Mass Intervention
by Barnett
Summary: SI/OC An in depth story of 2 brothers from the military. Forced to join opposite sides of Good vs Evil that starts on Earth 2013. Thats until Evil decides to jump to the ME universe 2183 during the Events of ME1 and Shepard's battle against Saren and Sovereign taking the brothers with them. Chapter 1 is a prologue/backstory. tragedy/action/angst/romance/adventure Mshep/? OC/?
1. Chapter 1

**Right first things first I'd like to mention that this is my first attempt at fan fiction after reading many others and I thought why not give it a try myself as I've had many ideas of what my own would entail, so I hope you find it appealing.**

**This is an SI/OC story which will expand across the events of ME1, merging the OC's into the the main characters journey from more or less the first chapter which is why I've added a prologue to introduce my OC's and give you an idea of who they are, what they're like, names etc etc etc. I've added a little back story of my OC's as much as I can but not too much, as I'm going to be doing several flashback scenes throughout this story at certain points to explore their personalities and give depth into why they are the way they are. I'm also telling it from a 3rd person view and may divert from canon because of the usage of OC's, but hopefully not by much.**

**My Shepard is default/war hero/spacer/soldier/paragon with a default name John Shepard.**

**Many thanks Barnett**

**ps please review good or bad and any tips or pointers are very welcome.**

**Disclaimer**

**I do not own the rights to Bioware or any of the related aspects of Mass Effect.**

Mass Intervention : Prologue

Earth 0

Half of England lays in waste...millions were dead, there were fires, riots, mass destruction, murder and complete ultimate chaos due to a cosmic entity from the multiverse known only as Abraxas by the ones that follow him.  
Not much is known of the entity. Only that due to being incorporeal in our plane of existence, it has to select a herald to carry out its every command. Once he/she has been selected, they can begin their cycle of death and destruction in the name of their new master. Abraxas prides himself on be able to spread his infuence, attacking the weak minded and corrupting the livng soul into something evil in a quest of dominance and power. But with every negative there is a positive...

Following Abraxas, came another entity known to some as 'Bishop'. Also Incorporeal, taking the form of an aged African American man dressed in a white modern day suit. Bishop, like his evil counterpart also went in search of a herald to fight Abraxas. Thus protecting the planet from a hellish fate...

**Location : Old abandoned industrial site, Leicester, England 2013 - 6 months after the arrival of the entities.**

The 2 brothers stare each other down, their different coloured energies flaring violently around each others bodies in the dark night. Both men holding their katana swords in a stance, ready to attack. They're both dressed in modern day, light-weight body armor similar to what riot police would wear, but customised it to fit their own tastes.

The older brother Scott Campbell was chosen to be herald to Bishop, to fight the evil that has come to his world. He charges his powers, causing the aura generated around his body to radiate blue in colour. Minus the inhuman blue display of power eminating from him, he is a 6'2, dark short haired 28yr old white male, athletic, but well built due to his time serving in many tours as a 2nd lieutenant in the British Royal marines.

While the younger brother, Ross Campbell, whom is the chosen herald to Abraxas. He is a 5'11 dark short haired white 27yr old male. Also a military man who served in Iraq as a Staff Sergeant in the British Army. A common ground that both brothers once were most proud of. The energy aura generated from his powers radiates a bright crimson red around his body. Once an honerable man, but now stands transformed into the personification of evil.

"Ross please! We don't have to do this! Fight it, before its too late! I know you're in there bro, don't let it take you. You're stronger than that thing is." pleads the older brother.

Ross's eyes ripple with a red fire while he grins "Fight what Scott? The sheer power? The strength? The authority? You feel it too don't you? Our powers are at their strongest when we are together. Join us and we can rule all mankind as true gods! The old man you fight for is weak and foolish to believe that this is not our true destiny. Just look around you? Is humanity really worth fighting for? We've fought for years spilling blood in wars and battles in the military. We watched our friends die for this poor excuse for a civilisation. And how do we get repaid? By watching the ones we love the most get snatched away from us by the very people we were fighting for. I say fuck that! Time for a change." He cracks his neck side to side "We both know our powers won't have any affect on each other and I'm thinking that I'm more skillfull than you with a blade, so I will give you a choice." He smiles evilly, "Join me and be a god... Or die?...What do you say o brother of mine?"

Scott cant believe that this man in front of him was once his younger brother, his best friend, a soldier...and the only family he has left. He then looks around him at the orange glow caused from the fires in the dark sky, at the destroyed buildings where a civilisation once flourished which now reeks of nothing but death.

He realises that the only one way to stop all this from spreading across the globe, is that he's going to have to finally kill his own brother that he still loves dearly. "Not a chance in hell, little brother, but I'm giving you one last chance...Stop this now or I swear to you, Ross...I will kill you if I have too, if just to save you if anything else."

Ross shakes his head actually amused "HA! Kill me? Are you for real? I'm power incarnate you fucking idiot! Go fuck yourself" he spits back.

Then all of a sudden with lightening speed, Ross charges Scott with his blade, swinging it towards his neck. Scott reacts just as fast by motioning to the left to block the attack and counter-acts by spin kicking his brother in the back of the head making him stumble backwards. Ross quickly recovers and turns, swinging his katana once again in a series of attacks to which Scott keeps deflecting each time accordingly. Sparks fly from the impact of blade hitting blade until a brief moment of pause and both men take a few steps back. The brothers realise that they seem to be evenly matched in not only power, but skill also.

Scott then goes on the offensive by faking an upper body attack with his weapon and then drops down sweeps Ross's legs from under him. Ross slams onto his back dropping his katana and Scott kicks it away. Scott raises his own blade with both hands ready to impale his brother, but suddenly hesitates...He cant do it. Flashing memories of the man his little brother used to be flood his mind. The childhood they shared together, the times he they were always there for each other all seem to enter his mind at once.

This brief moment of hesitation is just long enough for Ross to use his powers to call his katana into his hand, then impaling it straight into Scott's shoulder and kicking him with such strength, he flies backwards into the air with incredible force. He slams into a still half standing wall which such velocity, it collapses onto him and buries him completly. Ross gets to his feet with the intent of finishing off his sibling, when suddenly he hears his masters words beckon him and as expected, he sees a black hooded figure appear before him. His master...Abraxas.

"My Herald...You have served me well, but I grow impatient with our conquest of this world, as well as the constant interference of your brother and my oh so noble counter-part he serves. I know of another reality in the multiverse where my essence will not only spread over that reality's earth, but the entire galaxy. There are forces at work in that there that we will influence and take advantage of to serve our needs. Now come, as the journey will take much of my power and I shall need time to recover."

"NO! I'm going to finish this! He's right there for me to finally kill once and for all and I won't let him live now, not even for you." The dark herald fires back. He walks onwards towards where his brother is buried when suddenly an invisible force lifts him in the air, paralysing him in severe pain. His every fibre in his body feels like its on fire as he tries to scream, but can't.

"ENOUGH! You shall do as I command you ungrateful dog! I gave you your power and I can quite easily take it away...Now, I shall open a portal to this new reality and you shall do as I order you to without question!" The dark entity commands.

Abraxas lowers Ross down to the ground, realising him from his hold. He holsters his katana on his back whilst standing up. "Yes...my lord." He then turns and walks through the portal behind him, vanishing as commanded. Abraxas follows behind.

Scott regains consciousness, and realising that he's buried he quickly releases a charge of his powers, blasting away the brick and stone rubble that fell on him, letting out a roar of pure rage. "AARGHHHHH!"  
He pushes the pain back from the bleeding wound on his shoulder whilst scanning the area for his brother, but finds no one. 'Why would he leave?' He thinks to himself. Then he hears a voice behind him that he knows all too familiar.

"Hello Scott." Bishop greets his herald. Standing there with his hands behind his back, dressed in his usual full white modern day suit.

"Where did he go Bishop? We have to stop him and Abraxas now, once and for all, before they destroy the rest of the country." He urges Bishop, while holding his hand over his wound feeling it starting to heal already, it should be as good as new in a day or two.

"They're gone Scott. Abraxas took your brother across the multiverse to another universe entirely. Where he thinks he can not only gain more power, but cause much more death and destruction by using an army of what i can only describe as celestial beings and again, using your brother as his General. I didn't think my evil counterpart had enough raw cosmic energy to travel to that particular universe again, as it's also located far in the future where humanity has drastically changed. Humans there have now ventured to many worlds and solar systems via space travel, using 'faster than light travel' technology and can travel great distances in minutes using something called 'Mass Relays'. Many new species of life now flourish across the galaxy there with equal advancements in their own technology, with their own governments, politics and councils. Some far more superior and advanced to the human race."

"Are you having a fucking laugh Bishop?" Scott cuts in, trying to process the information his cosmic friend/teacher is telling him. He thinks about asking how he knows all this, but he gave up on trying to make sense of Bishop back when he first came into his life 6 months ago. The man isn't even from this universe let alone the same galaxy. What he does know is that he was chosen to defend the helpless, protect the innocent and fight this evil to his last breath. It's why he became a marine in the first place...He thought his brother was the same as him...But he quickly shakes that trail of thought from his mind. He needs to keep his head in the game.

"What now then Bishop?" He asks, already knowing the answer.

Bishop smiles, knowing that he made the right choice with Scott as his Herald. "Now we go after them, but there are a few things you need to know before we go through. Firstly your powers will decrease significantly due to the distance gained between you and your brother once you are there. Here on your planet it was a matter of miles between you, where over there it will be a matter of planets or even entire solar systems expanding the galaxy. You will retain a your superior physical attributes in regards to your strength, speed, agility, skill and endurance which will aid you in physical combat, but you must learn your limits quickly. Your energy based abilities will be completely gone until you come in close contact of your brother again to re-charge them, though you may retain some of your telekinetic abilities. You'll have to see for yourself once you arrive. Secondly you will need to find allies to help you, as I will not be able to assist you directly. I will be nothing more than a ghost whilst I'm there unfortunately. Even to you my friend."

Scott cuts in, "So let me get this straight Bishop...You're sending me into a universe in the future I know fuck all about to take down my bro and the 'big bad', who may now have a big ass fucking army as well as my brother backing him up. Your also telling me that I'm going to lose the majority of my power and I'm also going to be doing this on my lonesome as well...Why don't you kill me now mate?" He sits down on the ground leaning back against a piece of a wall.

Bishop raises a hand in defence and continues. "As I was saying, the reason you will have to through this mostly alone is because to send us there it will take most of the power I have and I don't know how long it will take me to recover. Weeks or maybe even months...I don't have the answer to that. But that doesn't mean I can't keep watch over you from time to time on your mission. You won't see me or know I'm there but I may be able to nudge you in the right direction or help influence you on the important choices that could drastically affect your mission. I know this is a lot to process my friend, but trust me when I say that I chose you for a reason. It was the qualities you behold like integrity, bravery, selflessness, indomitable will and your ability to overcome great fear that makes me firmly believe you can and will succeed in defeating The Darkness that threatens the universe we will travel to. Maybe even your brother can be saved somehow, because if anyone can find a way... It's you."

Scott looks up at Bishop. Even though the 'man's' words ment a lot to him, a huge wave of doubt now hit him. "Thanks for having the faith and all that in me Bishop, but I have to say I'm fucking scared shitless here mate. This just got a whole lot bigger than me, my brother or my world not to mention." He looks up at the night sky running both his hands through his hair and over his face, taking a deep breath. He thinks about his tours in Iraq with the 33rd regiment when they've faced overwhelming odds in battle, never giving up and always completing their missions.  
Using that memory, he finds his resolve "Do you know what? Fuck it. I ain't leaving my brother in some fucked up future reality or whatever that place is. I'll either save him or kill him myself, and if I don't die in the process then I swear to God himself that I'm gonna kill that cosmic, evil motherfucker for everything it's done. But just one more thing though Bishop. What happens here once we're gone? I mean that thing has corrupted so many and caused so much damage. Plus, once the mission is over, how do we get back?"

Bishop raises a hand again, but this time in reassurance adding "Now that Abraxas has fled your world, his influence will fade accordingly, Scott. England, over time will recover and rebuild. Coming to their own conclusions of what transpired here, the way the human race mostly does when faced with events they can't explain with there own logic and reasoning. As for getting back...Well we'll have to cross that bridge when we get to it. Now, let's get moving shall we?"

"I guess so" Scott replies, walking over and standing next to Bishop, who with a hand gesture throws forth a vast blue cosmic energy ball several feet in front of them ,which spreads as if hitting a wall forming a portal or wormhole of somekind. It crackles with a bright white electricity, lighting up their surroundings. Scott takes out the small crucifix he wears under his armor on a chain around his neck that his mother gave him and kisses it. He says a quick prayer in his head and then re-tucks it away.  
He then turns to Bishop with a forced smile of readiness "I'm ready, old man."

To which Bishop smiles back "Good luck Scott, and remember...I'll be watching over you."

Scott then runs at the portal and leaps into it. All his senses go numb as he feels that every molecule in his body is being pulled in every direction at the same time. All he sees is white. His last thought before that? 'Yeah...I'm so royally fucked!'

**Authors notes :**

_**Next in chapter 1...**_

**Location** **: Eden prime 2183 prothean beacon...**

**I've made Scott and Ross's powers linked and Scott is going to be de-powered throughout the story for a good reason, as i only plan on having them face each other twice in the whole story. . So that Scott can interact with the main ME1 story on an equal level and also with the crew showing his weaknesses and vulnerabilities as a human still and not steal Shepard's, or the rest of the crew's thunder because at the end of the day its Shepard who is the Hero of this universe after all. So there you go people. That's the start of Mass intervention. I know the prologue was very long for an introduction but i wanted to get all that info out so you know the backbone of Scott's mission...Review are greatly welcomed.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**** : Bioware all aspects of mass effect and its franchise blah blah blah ME3 ending sucks balls blah blah blah **

Mass Intervention

Chapter 1

**Location**** : Eden prime, Prothean Beacon 2183 **

Scott felt himself hit cold metallic flooring. His senses slowly returning to him, he realises that it was daytime now wherever he is. The other thing he realises is how weak he's feeling. He knew Bishop had told him that his abilities would be more or less gone, but he'd gotten used to having them 24/7 over the last 6 months. 'This will take some getting used to... Fuck knows where Ross must be.' he thinks to himself in regards to his brother. He gradually gets to his feet to which he looks behind him seeing the portal he came through start to dissipate and eventually fades out altogether.  
"Guess I really am on my own now" he says out loud to himself whist checking his shoulder wound, which had already closed up nicely due to his accelerated healing.  
Looking around he took in his immediate surroundings. What he was standing on seemed to be a platform attached to a structure of some kind and clearly more advanced to anything he's seen back home. He also saw what looked like 3 bodies at the bottom of a ramp next to some creates but they were most definitely not human. He took a closer look seeing that they are maybe synthetic in nature with strange flashlight like heads. One is completely different and looked like some cybernetic zombie. Both have many bullet holes in them.  
'What the fuck are those!' he thinks to himself as his combat instincts automatically kick in and his muscles tense. He then pulls his Katana out of its holster out from behind his back as it is the only weapon he has on him, just in case he runs into any of these things that are still alive. He is still quite disorientated from the travel through the portal, so trying to use his TK in a combat situation right now would be pointless.

'You are way out of your comfort zone here marine' he thinks to himself in realisation, 'Put me in Afghanistan with my trusty SA80 assault rifle and a small regiment of men, I will fuck my enemy up. But here, for all I know I'm on an alien planet where the locals are robots that shoot lasers out of their heads and all I've got is myself, some fancy moves and a sword. Great. Just fucking great' the realisation turning to doubt.  
Staying alert and continuing to scan the area, he looks outwards past the balcony of the platform to what was a relatively beautiful sight with a mixture of landscape and what he can only describe as tall technological towers of some sort. There was also this weird long glowing post on the platform about 15feet to his left that looks like it was directly out of a Star Wars film. Just as he is about to approach it he hears a man's voice shout from behind the crates, he swiftly turns to face the voice in a defensive stance, katana at the ready in both hands.

"Drop your weapon and step away from the beacon!" a voice commands. A man and his two companions emerge from behind the crates. All three have their weapons aimed at Scott.

The two men hold what looks like to Scott as highly advanced Heavy Pistols and the woman holds a strange looking assault rifle. They are wearing a form of tight flexible battlesuit armor that looks like to have heavy plating on the shoulders, chest, torso, legs and arms with helmets to match. They also seem like they had been in a firefight, but he hadn't heard any gunfire yet. 'Killed those robot things maybe?' he considers. The men's armor is dark grey in colour and one had an 'N7' insignia on the chest and a red stripe along the right arm. The woman's armor is white and pink of all things which he thinks is ironic, seeming that this is the future supposedly. But then again all that his body armor consists of is black kevlar and some lightweight metal plating from back home, which is way ancient in comparison.

"I said drop your weapon and step away from the beacon NOW!" the man at the front of the trio with the N7 on his chest commands again, sounding a little more impatient from having to repeat himself.

Scott quickly assesses the situation he is in. He assumes that the man at the front of the trio is the leader and there is also the fact that they are human at least, where the bodies on the floor by the ramp are not. There is also no way he could win this fight right now if he chooses not to do what he is being told. After all he is still injured, out numbered and out gunned. 'Bishop did tell me to try and make allies once I was here so screw it, if anything I might get some answers to some questions' he thinks to himself, lowering his sword to the ground and steps back.

"Take me to your leader" he quips grinning mentaly, showing surrender by holding up his hands. To show no weaknesses he keeps a stern posture in front of the three.

The leader of the trio lowers his gun as does the other man with him, while the woman keeps her rifle trained on him.

"Careful commander, I don't like the look of this guy. For all we know he's with the Geth and the Turian who killed Nihlus that guns smuggler told us about. He could also be here to destroy the beacon before we managed to get here." warns the woman in pink and white.

Then the third man speaks "I don't think so Chief. He's armed with a sword which wouldn't even penetrate our shields of all things and look at what he's wearing? That armor couldn't protect any soldier I know of in combat though that doesn't explain what we seen him come through when he arrived."

"How about you answer a few questions." The leader speaks to Scott, taking charge of the conversation "1. Who are you? 2. What are you doing here? And 3. What the hell was that thing that you just dropped out of nowhere through?"

Scott pauses for a moment thinking, 'Shit! They saw me come though the portal' he starts running various answers that might seem plausible to the truth and not make him look completely insane, but in all honesty they may very well sound believable wherever this place is. This is the future right?  
"Ok I'll answer your questions but after I answer, I've got some of my own. Now 1. I am 2nd Lieutenant Scott Campbell of the 33rd regiment in the British Royal Marines 2. I've been sent here on a very important mission to destroy an entity that has come to your galaxy. And 3. That was a portal that was opened through time and space from where I started my mission. I call it home." Scott looks at the expressions the the trio's faces which doesn't exactly fill him with confidence. He wants to keep the details short and sweet, making it need to know only. Though the woman does lower her rifle, but he thinks that is due to the fact of what he just said sounds so fucked up that she no longer considers him a threat.  
"Now for my questions if you don't mind" making a statement and not a request. Showing a finger on his right hand for each question he asks "Who are all of you? Where the hell am I? And what the fuck is a geth or a turian and those robotic flashlight head thingy's?" he points to the geth bodies laying on the floor. "And I want to speak to someone who's in charge because if the thing I'm after succeeds in what its come here to do, then countless lives will be lost. Fact!" he tries to sound as calm as possible maintaining his 'game face' and not lose is cool. When in reality he is screaming inside his head trying to process everything that's happening.

As unbelievable as what the leader of the group has just heard, he still decides to answer the strangers questions back. He don't want to take any risks, especially after what the three of them have just been through getting to the beacon with the fighting the geth, plus seeing that colossal geth ship take off earlier. Not to mention finding out about Saren killing Nihlus. "We are with the Alliance Navy. My name is Commander Shepard off the SSV Normandy" he gestures to the man beside him, "This is Lieutenant Alenko" then to the woman, "And this is Gunnery Chief Williams. You say that you're British Royal Marine, but they were all disbanded and reassigned back when the Systems Alliance was founded back in 2149. So that wormhole, gateway or whatever that was you fell out of has raised some concerns I have, because I've never seen anything or heard of anything like it before. Then there is this entity you speak of that is supposed to be a danger to countless lives. So lets just say I'm going to take your word on what you're saying. For now."

'I guess that's a better response than most would expect.' Scott thinks to himself.

"Other than that, I can tell you that this is the planet Eden Prime and those things laying dead over there are called the geth. They're race of AI's that have attacked this spaceport and the Alliance colony situated here in search of that Prothean beacon." he points to the glowing beacon at the edge of the platform.

"And they killed my entire squad so god help me if you're lying to us." Chief Williams cuts in. She looks tired and emotional almost. Her armor looks like it had took a beating also.

The Lieutenant senses this and begins talking to Chief Williams about the beacon in an effort to distract her while Commander Shepard continues talking to Scott.  
"Wow this is amazing, actual working prothean technology. Unbelievable" Alenko says to Williams, while he stares at the green pulse the beacon emits.

"It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it up. Something must've activated it" she responds back, taking a step closer to the beacon.

As the chief and LT continue to discuss the beacon, Commander Shepard continues to speak to Scott "Is there anything else you can tell me that can confirm what you are telling us LT Campbell? Because if I take you and this information to my Captain on the Normandy, he will most definitely need some kind of concrete evidence. He didn't see what we saw when you arrived and which to be fair is your most compelling evidence that you have."

"I'm sorry Commander, but other than the clothes on my back, my armor and my Katana sword which was bestowed to me by the man who sent me, I don't have anything I'm afraid. But please listen when I say this. That thing that has come here into this universe, it was in the process of taking my world. I fought it for almost 6 months as its influence caused the death millions as it infected the souls of the innocent, turning them into puppets who kill and destroy at its command." He looks away, "My family and friends were murdered amongst the first victims. It has control of my brother who now follows it as its General and has brought him here with it to this universe to aid it in its plans. So believe me or not, sooner or later this universe will feel its presence because they've come here for a reason which is bad for all life in this galaxy. I just hope it won't be too late by then. In the mean time if you are done here with me, I need a ride off of this world so I can find some actual help." The last words are said bitterly even though Shepard seems to have partly believed him for some strange reason he can't explain. Scott picks up his Katana and re-holsters it behind his back getting ready to leave. But he has to ask himself 'would even I believe me?'

Curiously Scott asks "What's the deal with this beacon Commander any ways? I assume these geth things are after it also? And Chief Williams said that a turian killed a friend of yours?"

"The turian we're looking for is named Saren. And yes we believe he killed a friend of ours, a Spectre named Nihlus who is also a turian. I _was_ going to ask if you have seen him but if you really don't know what a turian is its unlikely, and a turian is something you'd notice if you've never seen one, trust me. Our priority mission was to come and collect the beacon for the data it may hold. so if you excuse me a for couple of minutes while I radio the Normandy for extraction." says Shepard, signaling LT Alenko to his side.

Scott steps out of the way of the military officers and was just about to ask Williams a question, when she suddenly looks like she's struggling in pain as some invisible force begins pulling her towards the beacon. Scott instinctively acts, moving with uncanny speed and leaps across the distance to Williams's aid, grabbing her by the waist. He tries to hold her back from being pulled by the now violently rapid pulsating beacon and by lifting her off of the ground, he swings and throws Williams out of harms way several feet, only to be caught by the same invisible force that was pulling Williams in the first place.  
Shepard jumps into action next, trying to help Scott but its too late and he gets caught in the powerful vice of the beacon too. Instantly they feel their minds being invaded causing them great pain, working its way through their minds. They grab their heads naturally. They try to scream but cant. Next they are both lifted up into the air about 10 feet, parallel to each other and both facing the beacon it pulses loudly with power, growing more and more bright with energy building up.

"Shepard! Campbell!" shouts Williams, trying to get back up to help them, but LT Alenko grabs her.

"No don't! its too dangerous!" he says, holding Williams back.

Random images flood the men's minds of battles and wars of alien races. Giant machines and synthetics butchering people and other alien races. But not making any sense as its all mixed up, as if its in pieces and needs putting together. They hear the screams of innocents dying horribly and without malice. Then there is one image that Scott did recognise though, if only for a second in the flurry of randomness being forced into his mind. He'd never miss that thing if he saw it...Abraxas.

The two men remain suspended in the air until the beacon builds up so much power, it simply explodes launching both of them backwards and crashing to the floor of the platform with a hard thud. Both men lay motionless and unconscious.

Williams dashes to Shepard's side to check if he was still breathing while Alenko checks on Scott, both using their Omni-tools to scan them. They both confirm that they are breathing, but aren't sure of the severity of their injuries.

Alenko radios the Normandy "Joker! This is Lieutenant Alenko we need a medical emergency evac ASAP! We have 2 men in need of immediate attention. One is the Commander. Also inform the Captain and the beacon recovery team that the beacon is now in pieces."

"Aye aye LT, ETA five minutes." the helmsman replies.

**Location**** SSV Normandy : Medical Bay**

Commander Shepard is carried into the Med-Bay first on a stretcher by the Normandy crewmen, followed by Scott being carried in by Williams and Alenko. They both are placed on bunks next to each other. Dr Chakwas walks in from the Med-Lab in the opposite room and looks to Alenko and Williams "Lieutenant what happened down there? And I thought Jenkins was coming up with the Commander?" she says in her clear British accent. She wastes no time and starts checking the patients vitals, scanning them using her Omni-Tool. Satisfied that their physical condition was safe enough, she looks to the crewmen who brought in Shepard "you two! Would you please remove their armor? Then you can go" She says quickly before Alenko has the chance to answer the questions he was asked. She then turns to Alenko as if to motion that he can talk.

"I'm not sure how to explain it Doc, the prothean beacon just took a hold of both of them and then a few moments later exploded. Ive never seen anything like it." Alenko says, running his hands through his hair. "Corporal Jenkins was killed soon after we got groundside." he pauses, reliving the memory "It was geth drones. He didn't stand a chance."

"I'm sorry to hear that Lieutenant. Jenkins was a nice man and a good soldier." Dr Chakwas reassures him "And what about this gentleman here Lieutenant? He doesn't look like he's Alliance or from the colony from the attire he's wearing."

"That guy is a whole different story Doc. I should really speak to the Captian and give him a full debriefing on the mission first. I can tell you that his name is Scott Campbell." he replies.

"Well at least take a seat for a moment and catch you breath Lieutenant because to be honest you look like hell" she says, like a mother to a child. She gestures to the seat by one of the bunks.

"Thanks Doc I think I will" he replies sitting down.

The mention of Jenkins being killed had sent a fresh wave of guilt through Williams. She was the sole survivor of the 212. She blames herself for losing her entire squad and now she feels responsible for Shepard and this Campbell guy too. 'If I only kept my distance from that damn beacon' she thinks to herself.

Dr Chakwas then turns her attention to Williams. She assumes that she was positioned with the colony groundside and was there when the geth attacked. 'She looks exhausted. Poor girl.' "Are you ok my dear?" Chakwas asks, "I can check you over if your hurt at all. My name is Dr Chakwas"

Williams snaps out of her train of thought to the Dr's voice only just catching what she asked "Wha...Oh sorry Doctor, I'm Gunnery Chief Williams" she states snapping back to reality. I'm fine other than a few scraps and bruises. Nothing a good shower, a meal and some rest can't sort out."

"Well at least get out of that armor before you do and the medi-gel is on that wall over there if you need any." Chakwas nods over to the medi-gel dispenser on the wall by the door of the Med-bay. The Doctor turns her attention to the two patients laying unconscious on the bunks to run some tests.

"Thanks Doctor, I think I will" she replies, starting to remove her armor placing it on the ground next to where Alenko is still sitting back on a seat holding his head in his hands.

"It should be me laying on that bunk unconscoius." she says to herself out loud in guilt, looking over at the two unconscious men laying down.

"Well if it wasn't for Campbell jumping in and saving you like that Chief, it would be you laying there. I thought the Commander had fast reflexes but that guy was just gone in a flash and then by your side in an instant pulling you to safety." the LT comments impressed.

Williams looks highly surprised at what Alenko said "I just assumed it was the Commander who pulled me clear. By the time I knew what was happening I was on on the ground and they both was in the air." Williams then thinks about how hostile she was towards Campbell and how she doubted that he was telling the truth about his origins. Now after all that, he only went and possibly saved her life which only added to the guilt she was feeling. 'Way to go Ashley!' she mentally facepalms. 'You'll have thank him and apologise when he's up and around. Hope they're both going to be ok' she thinks to herself.

"Do you think he was telling the truth about who is was and where he came from sir." she asks Alenko.

"I don't know Chief. It does seem pretty far fetched. I want to have a look at that armor he was wearing and that sword. Maybe we can get some answers from them after running some tests. The scary thing I'm asking myself is, what if he's telling the truth? I'll admit one thing though, I do trust him a bit more for throwing himself in the firing line like that. Takes guts."

"Yeah, I guess your right sir." she agrees.

"Lieutenant Alenko! Please can you come to my quarters for a full de-brief of your mission. Also can you bring Chief Williams with you as I would like her imput on her involvement." The deep voice of Captain Anderson didn't sound too pleased as he spoke over the Normandy's comm.

"Come on Chief, this is going to be one long de-brief." says Alenko.

"Aye aye sir." she replies.

**Authors note**

**there you have the first chapter people so leave feedback or PM any tips, pointers or ideas you may think be cool. Also I'd like to apologise for any grammar mistakes. It's been a very long while since I've written anything like this. I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as I can which won't be too long I imagine as I'm on the case daily wanting to get to certain parts of this story. **

**Thanks Barnett**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**** : Bioware owns all aspects of Mass Effect and all its characters even though they cant write endings...**

Mass Intervention

Chapter 2

**Location**** : SSV Normandy Medical Bay**

Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams sat keeping a watchful eye over the two patients in the Med-bay. She had requested that she be able to sit with them for the last hour or so hoping to be there when they awoke. She felt she owed them that, blaming herself for them getting hurt and the beacon exploding.  
Earlier she had a very long de-briefing with LT Alenko and Captain Anderson which resulted with her being assigned to the Normandy and also part of the away team until further notice, meaning she was going to see plenty of action. She couldn't believe it, the _SSV Normandy_. The most advanced Alliance frigate in the Navy. She must have had placed a dozen requests for transfers to posts over the years which had all been denied. The Gunnery Chief had put it down to what she called the 'Williams family curse' which was one of the reasons she pushed herself so hard to be the better than the best marine. To her surprise though, Anderson had said he wasn't interested in her family history and that she was an excellent marine from what he could tell from her military file, plus Alenko had recommended her after her actions on Eden Prime to fill the space made from Jenkin's unfortunate fate, which did feel a little wrong in a sense.  
'I'll have to buy him a drink for that sometime' she thought of the LT in gratitude. Her new post on the ship cheering her up somewhat.  
After being dismissed Alenko had said he wanted to run tests on Campbell's sword and armor to see if he can verify whether he was telling the truth about his origins and they parted ways.  
Since then, she had managed to have a long hot shower and attain some Alliance fatigues while putting a request for her belongings to be transferred to the Citadel for pick-up via the requisitions officer. She also found her locker and new station at the less than average sized armory in the cargo hold of the ship, so she could take apart and clean her weapons which she takes great pride in.  
Afterwards she took the time to write an e-mail to each of the families of her former squad, the 212. She was their squad leader so it was the least she could do as she felt responsible for them, wanting their families to know what great marines they were and how valiantly they fought defending their post. It was emotional to say the least finding the words as tears flowed while she wrote each letter. She then thought about her own family and e-mailed her mother and sisters back on Amaterasu explaining everything that has happened. Feeling hungry after all the typing and being awake for almost 22 hours straight, she made her way up to the Mess Hall for something to eat before heading into the Med-bay.

Commander Shepard begins to stir in from his medical bunk he's laying on. Head head is throbbing as if he had been on a shore leave drinking marathon with his old N7 squad mates. 'I'm in the Med-bay' he thinks to himself. Flashbacks of the events on Eden Prime came flooding back to him. He rubbs his eyes and then he notices Campbell on the bunk next to him unconscious. He wonders how long he's been laying here for, as his armor had been removed and he was dressed in his standard blue Alliance fatigues.

"Doctor! Doctor Chakwas is think he's waking up." Chief Williams announces, standing up from the chair she had been sitting on, almost falling asleep herself.

Doctor Chakwas walks around to Shepard who was now sitting upright on the edge of his bunk "You had us worried there Shepard. How are you feeling?"

"Like I've just gone 10 rounds with a Krogan, but I'll survive. How long was I out?" he replies.

"Around 15 hours. Some thing happened down on Eden Prime with the beacon. Do you remember Commander?" asks the Doctor

"Its a little hazy but It's coming back to me." he says sliding off of the bunk, retrieving his boots from the foot of the bunk to put them on

"It's my fault." Williams cut in, "I must've triggered some security field when I approached it. It gripped me and when I tried to fight against it, Campbell grabbed me and pushed me out of the way only to be gripped by it too. Then when you tried to help him, it got a hold of you also." She sounded apologetic.

Shepard turns to face her "You had no way to know what would happen Chief. It could've been any one of us that triggered it." he says reassuringly.

"Actually we don't even know what set it off. Unfortunately we'll never be get the chance to find out." states Dr Chakwas.

"You were both lifted into the air and the beacon exploded. Systems overload maybe? When blast knocked you both out cold the LT and I tended to you both until a Med-evac arrived and brought you here." Williams explains.

"Thank you Williams, I appreciate it." he says.

"Physically your fine but I detected some unusual brain activity. Abnormal beta waves. I also noticed and increase in your rapid eye movement, signs typically associated with intense dreaming. Mr Campbell has also been showing these signs." Dr Chakwas explains.

Shepherd stared into the space in front of him trying to remember what he was he was dreaming about "I saw...I'm not sure what I saw. Death, destruction, war...nothings really clear." It hurt Shepard to think right now.

The Doctor looks deep in thought "Hmmm, I'll make sure to add this to my report Commander, It may be important at some point." She looks over to the second patient in the Med-bay "There was was also something else I wanted to discuss with you in regards to Mr Campbell."

The mention of Campbell made both Williams and Shepard look directly at Dr Chakwas giving them their full attention.

"Is he ok Doctor?" Shepard asks.

Dr Chakwas walks over to her desk and picks up a datapad and walks back handing it to Shepard. "That's the thing you see, he's fine. Better than fine actually. While I was treating the both of you I found some odd readings on Mr Campbell so I decided to run some..."

With a swishing sound the Med-Bay door opens and Captain Anderson walks in. His sheer presence shouted out authority. Dressed in navy blue official Alliance officer attire, the three stripes on each shoulder stating his rank.  
Williams instantly stands at alert to which the Captain quickly responds "At-ease Williams" he turns to Chakwas, "How's our XO holding up Doctor?"

"Well all his readings look normal, so I'd say he's going to be just fine." she reports.

"I'm glad to hear it." Anderson says relieved, "And this must be the Gentleman I was informed about who came through some form of gateway between universes."

"It's actually good you came when you did Captain as I was just about to explain some interesting test results I've found on Mr Campbell here to the Commander." Dr Chakwas pauses and looks at Williams, not sure if she should divulge any more information until she leaves seeing that she isn't a senior officer.

Anderson picks up on her hint straight away "It's ok Doctor I need to speak to Williams regarding our guest. I've already spoken to Lieutenant Alenko regarding this matter...Please carry on."

Dr Chakwas looks over at Campbell "I'll start by saying I've never seen anything like this in all my years of medical practice. As you can see from the results shown on the datapad the Commander is holding, Mr Campbell's physiological and biological scans show that he is at the very peak of what any human can possibly be physically. It's like he is the perfect human male specimen without any flaws what so ever. His strength, speed, agility, endurance, reflexes and stamina are far greater than any normal man who has trained his entire life is at his very peak. He heals incredibly fast due to the x4 white blood cell count of the average human. A stab wound or even gunshot would would heal completely in literally 48-72 hours. Even his five senses of hearing, touch, smell, sight and taste are enhanced to the same degree. I'm also pretty sure that his ageing process would be dramatically reduced also. The Alliance does have some level of knowledge when it come to beneficial genetic enhancement, but Mr Campbell's case goes beyond anything we can imagine." she sounds almost excited from her findings.

"So what are you saying Doctor is that he's some kind of 'super soldier. He mentioned that he was a marine back where he was from. A 2nd Lieutenant " Shepard asks, handing the datapad findings over to Anderson.

"I suppose you could use that term accordingly, Commander. The last thing I discovered was the fact he also uses another part of his brain that normal humans don't. An extra 30 percent of the brain I'd guess. This allows a much higher level of brain function and granting incredible learning and information storing capabilities. He possibly may have some telekinetic power too, being able to move objects with his mind similar to a biotic in comparison. I'm not saying he can't be killed, as a bullet to the head or enough damage to the body would kill him like any other human man. Other than that there is no identification chip within his body and no records on him via the Alliance database or any databases for that matter. It's like he doesn't exist." she concluded.

Williams just stands there in silence absorbing all the information she was hearing as it was truly incredible. 'Imagine him in the battlefield, I wonder what he's capable of? Would he be better than Shepard? Alenko did say he was lightening fast when he saved my ass back with the beacon' she thinks to herself.  
She then thinks about how he surrendered to the three of them and what might have happened if he hadn't.

"Thank you very much for the information Doctor, I guess well know more once he wakes up." Dr Chakwas returns to the Med-lab in the next room.

Anderson then continues to talk Shepard and Williams, "I also have some information that seems to back his claims he's from another reality and possible timeline...as crazy as it sounds. Lieutenant Alenko did a microfibre scan Campbell's armor and found it to be almost 175 years old, even though it looked almost new. He also scanned his only weapon which was that sword .He found the metal of the blade didn't match any known metals we have on file, also the very cell structure of the metal was super-charged on a molecular level which made it massively dense, razor sharp and virtually unbreakable. With enough force it can cut through steel like a hot knife through butter making it a unique and deadly weapon in the right hands."  
He looks over to Campbell and seems to ponder a thought before looking back at Williams "Williams, I would like you not to discuss Campbell or his origins to anyone other than the Lieutenant, the Commander and myself, as I don't want to cause a stir with the rest of the crew. Now I would like to have a word with the Commander in private, and I understand you've been awake for almost 24 hours. We're going to be heading to the Citadel soon and I recommend you get some sleep as you'll be part of the shore party. The sleeper pods are just outside the Med-bay near the main battery." he gestures to the door.

"I'm fine Captain, I was hoping to return once you're finished here with the Commander to wait for Campbell to wake up so I could..."

Anderson cuts in "That's an order Chief Williams. I wont have my crew operating at anything but 100 percent. You'll get your chance to speak to him later. Dismissed."

"Aye aye Captain." she replies and then salutes before she leaves.

Turning his attention to Shepard, Anderson continues "It sounded like that beacon hit you pretty hard Shepard, you sure you're ok?"

"I'll be fine sir. Intel dropped the ball back there. We had no idea what we were walking into down there, that's why things went to hell. Jenkins might still be alive under different circumstances." Shepard responds sternly.

"The Geth haven't been seen beyond the veil in 2 centuries Commander, nobody could have predicted this. Soldiers die in our line of work under and Jenkins new that before he signed up. It's a cold truth unfortunately. I've notified his family and arranged his body to be sent home for a proper military burial." Anderson explains.

Shepard realised what Anderson was saying about the Geth and Jenkins was true, even though he didn't like it "You said you wanted to speak to me in private Captain?"

Anderson shifts his weight slightly "I wont lie to you Shepard, things look bad...Nihlus is dead, the beacon was destroyed and the Geth are invading. The Council are going to want answers. Then on top of that Campbell here drops from god knows where warning us of a coming threat to us all."

"The Geth would have wiped out the entire colony if I hadn't stopped them. We have nothing to be ashamed about." Shepard vents.

"I'll stand by you and your report all the way Shepard. You're a damn hero in my books. What is your opinion on our guest here." he nods over at Campbell on the bunk.

"After hearing the results from Chakwas's and Akenko's scans I'd say that I'm now inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt. If only you'd seen that portal, rift or whatever is was he came through, Captain. It was unreal. There is also the fact he surrendered instantly and without putting up any resistance when we now know he was well capable of doing so, and then he did save Williams, throwing himself into the line of fire when he had no reason to do so. He also asked to be brought to you Captain, I think to ask for our help. But like you said I guess we'll find out more when he wakes." Shepard leans back crossing his arms, "I was surprised to see Williams still on board."

Anderson explains "Given the situation on Eden Prime and the fact we have a space to fill in the crew roster, I assigned her to the Normandy's crew following Alenko's recommendation. She will also be on the ground team on future missions, following her ground assignment experience."

"She's an excellent soldier Captain. She's definitely proved that."

With a change of subject, Anderson continues "There was one more thing I wanted to discuss Shepard. Saren the other turian that was on Eden Prime. He's a Spectre, one of the best and a living legend, but if he's working with the Geth it means he's gone rogue. A rogue Spectre means serious trouble. Saren is dangerous and he hates humans."

"Why?" asks Shepard..

"He thinks we're growing too fast, taking over the galaxy. A lot of aliens think that way and most of them don't do anything about it, but Saren has allied himself with the Geth. Now I don't how how and I don't know why, but I do know it's something to do with that beacon. Alenko filled me in on what happened before the beacon exploded. Did you see anything? Any clue that might tell us what Saren was after?" he asks .

Shepard thinks back to the when his mind was being flooded with images while the beacon had a hold of him and Campbell "Just before I lost consciousness I had some kind of...vision."

Anderson takes a few paces, his arms crossed and taking mental note of everything Shepard is saying "A vision? A vision of what?"

"I saw synthetics...Geth maybe, slaughtering people, butchering them. But it was in bits, some of it was missing I think." He explains and a shiver goes down Shepard's spine. "I'm betting Campbell has got the rest of it in his head."

"We need to report this to the Council Shepard and if Campbell has the rest of the information that you didn't receive from the beacon, then we're going to need him aboard the Normandy." states Anderson. He then pauses in thought for a moment "I'll have to pull a few strings at Arcturus Station...but if he's willing to help us, I can get him ID registered and enlisted in the Alliance as a Corporal. Then his foreign background wont raise any questions. Then we can assist him in any way he needs as gratitude for his help."

"What do we tell the Council though? I had a bad dream? They'll think that we're wasting their time sir."

"We've had our top scientists look at the remains of the beacon and they've stated that it was activated before you had arrived at the scene. We don't exactly know what information was stored in that beacon. Lost prothean technology, blueprints for an ancient weapon of mass destruction but whatever is was, Saren also took it. But I know Saren, I know his politics, his reputation and he believes that humans are a blight on the galaxy. This attack was an act of war. He has the secrets of that beacon, he has an army of Geth at his command and he wont stop till he's wiped humanity off of the face of the galaxy."

"He wont succeed, we'll take him down sir." Shepard states confidently.

"It's not that easy Shepard, he's a Spectre. He can go anywhere and do almost anything. That's why we need the Council on our side."

Shepard realises "We prove Saren has gone rogue and the Council will remove his Spectre status."

"I'll contact the human ambassador and ask him to set us up an audience with the Council when we get to the Citadel. He'll most likely want to see us when we get there. Head up to joker and find out our ETA, then report back to me in my quarters and we'll go over the report on Eden Prime that you'll have to present to the Council." Andersen requests.

"Aye aye Captain." Shepard salutes and he leaves the Med-bay. As he walks out he sees Williams sitting at a table in the Mess Hall.

"Excuse me Commander" she calls, and Shepard walks over to where she's sitting "I just wanted to say that I'm glad you're ok. The crew could use some good news after what happened to Jenkins."

Shepard adds "Jenkins was a valuable part of this crew Chief, he will be missed."

"Part of me feels guilty for being here, losing Jenkins is what has given me my post on the Normandy." Williams admits.

"You're a good soldier Williams, you belong on the Normandy regardless of how you got here" He says reassuringly.

"Thanks Commander, that means a lot from you. I've never met anyone who's been awarded the 'Star Of Terra' ." says Williams in gratitude.

Shepard noticed how tired Williams was looking "Things got pretty rough down there. You sure you're gonna be ok?"

Williams sighs thinking about the 212 "I've seen friends die before, it comes with being a marine...But to see my whole unit wiped out and you never get used to seeing dead civilians but things would've been a lot worse if you hadn't have shown up."

"You played your part down there Williams, we're a team and we watch each others backs and I'm glad you got mine."

"I have to admit I was a bit nervous when I was assigned to the Normandy. It's nice when someone makes you feel welcome." She admits "Has Campbell woken up yet? I wanted to thank him for saving my ass back there with the beacon, especially as I was so hostile towards him."

"He's not awake yet but I'm sure it wont be long. Any ways the Captain ordered you to get some rest Chief. I'd guess it will be hours before we hit the Citadel yet and you'll be able to thank Campbell when he's up and about. He'll be joining our crew and coming with us as part of the shore party. We'll brief you once you're rested."

"Looking forward to it sir. Just gonna finish this hot drink and head to my sleeper pod."

"As you were Chief" he says. Shepard then moves on towards the CIC.

Back in the Med-Bay Scott Campbell's is still unconscious. His dreams haunted by a memory from the past.

_Earth 0 _

_Leicester, England 7 months ago_

_Scott Campbell sits in a bar with his brother and his wife, Ross and Liz Campbell. They'd been out celebrating a friends birthday. The brothers were due back to Afghanistan in a few weeks for another 6 month tour in their respective military forces so when out drinking together, they made the most of the night.  
Scott and Ross were ribbing each other about their choices in the military. Clearly the alcohol playing a part to the banter. Ross Campbell's wife Liz wasn't drinking and was the designated driver due to her being 7 weeks pregnant..._

"_You candy ass army grunts are all the same. You win a battle and take the glory with the press. When the fact remains that we marines are the ones who hit the battlefield first, laying the smackdown and securing the perimeter, doing all the hard work for you guys before you go in leaving you our left overs haha. Not saying your job is easy but lets just say you guys are the bacon of the British forces while we are the Prime rib. The tip of the spear bro." Scott says, taunting his younger brother "My little niece or nephew will make a fine marine." _

_Ross laughs shaking his head "Over my dead body! You Navy brats forget that all the hard work is done establishing the foothold by the real men of Britain and cant help it if we look damn handsome at the same time. Its how we roll oh brother of mine. You fight the Battles while we win the war. Fact." _

"_Well I out rank you bitch, now step in line and get the round in, that's an order." Scott hits back grinning._

"_Just because your girlfriend isn't here to pay for your drinks don't mean I'm paying for your cheap ass haahahaha I Have 2 mouths to feed soon."_

_Liz Campbell cuts in getting tired of the drunken sibling rivalry "Sweetie hate to burst your bubble boys, but I earn more than both you meatheads combined. Now I'm going to get the car and bring it around to the front to pick you up. Its throwing it down with rain outside." Liz gets up and walks out the bar door leaving the 2 brothers alone._

"_Cheers babe, I knew there was a reason I love you so much" Ross quips to his wife._

"_Do you know what Ross, you've got a good woman there. I envy you." says Scott, taking a gulp of his pint of beer._

"_That I agree with you on Bro. When I look at her carrying my baby, It makes at the death and violence worth it you know? Like its them and other peoples families that we fight for and protect."_

_Ross taps beer glasses with his brother._

_The brotherly moment is interrupted by the sound of car horn followed by a huge crash and screams just outside the bar. The brothers look to each other and dash out the door, only to find the Ford Focus that belongs to Ross's wife completely totalled and on its side. Another car with its front smashed in lays 20 feet away on the curb. Ross runs to his wife's car only to find his wife's lifeless body inside. He takes her in his arms and places his hand on where his unborn child would still be growing, tears flowing from his eyes as his world falls apart. "No no no no, please god no not both of them...NOOOOOOOOOO!" Ross screams with utter anguish and pain. Scott calls 999 from his cell phone for the emergency services, still in shock himself . He walks over to the other car, only for 2 men to get out with minor scraps, but clearly BOTH drunk and reeking of it. Scott grabs hold of the driver and slams him onto the floor for the police to arrive, knowing his brother will never be the same again after this._

Normandy Med-Bay

The Dream fades to black ending and the last thing Scott hears in his mind is a familiar friendly voice...Bishop.

"Follow Commander Shepard Scott. Your destinies and goals are more entwined that you can possibly imagine"

Scott Campbell opens his eyes to find himself laying in a bunk in the Normandy Med-Bay. He realises he's without his body armor, shirtless and minus his combats leaving only his boxers. He sits up at the side of the bunk rubbing his eyes like he'd been asleep for an age.  
'What the fuck happened to me' he thinks to himself, looking around the Normandy's medical treatment area. He is in complete awe of how advanced everything looks, yet still recognised the military touch to the room and notices a neatly folded set of navy blue fatigues on the bunk next to him, complete with a pair of size 10 military boots. 'Where am i? Am i still on that planet he arrived on?' The last thing he remembers was jumping to the aid of Chief Williams, who was with the trio of military officers he'd met. 'That beacon did something to me...What was those images' he asks himself. It hurts his head to think but he did feel well rested. The swishing sound of a door opening behind him causes him to jump off of the bunk and turn around into a defence stance.

"You can relax Mr Campbell. I'm Dr Chakwas, you are on the SSV Normandy in the Medical bay. Commander Shepard and yourself were involved in an incident with the prothean beacon back on Eden Prime, which resulted in you both being rendered unconscious. The crew then brought you aboard where I've been treating you for the last 16 hours."

Campbell's jaw drops as he stares at the grey haired Doctor "16 hours! It's been that long...Where are my clothes, my armor and my sword!" he demands.

"You need to calm down Mr Campbell. You are safe here I can assure you." Campbell senses that she is being genuine and relaxes a bit.

"All will be explained in a few minutes once the Captain arrives with the Commander." Dr Chakwas activates her Omni-tool and sends a message to Captain Anderson informing him that Campbell is awake. "You might want to get dressed Mr Campbell, the uniform on the bunk is for you."

Campbell looks down at his almost naked self, save his underwear "Er...right. Probably a good idea." He picks up the fatigues that are surprisingly his size and begins to get dressed.

Captain Anderson and Commander Shepard enter the Med-Bay a minute later "Good to see you're ok Campbell, I see the uniform fits you perfect. Don't worry about your belongings, your gear and your sword are all stored securely down in the armory. You can collect them as soon as we've finished talking. I'm Captain David Anderson of the SSV Normandy and I believe you've met my XO Commander Shepard."

Campbell automatically straightens up to the fact the Captain of a ship is standing in front of him. Old habit of being a Royal marine. Or used to be one more accurately "Yeah, we met back on that planet I arrived on from my home via the portal. Good to see you're ok Commander, I know you tried helping me out when that beacon took a hold of me and it sucked you in too so thank you any ways. I assume you got the fucked up slideshow of death also?"

"Yeah I did, how you feeling now?" Shepard asks

"Apart from a bit of a headache I feel great sir. Well rested and ready to start the mission to why I'm here." Campbell states.

"Ah yes, Shepard has informed me all about how you arrived, the reason you're here in our universe and how you're looking for your brother. We've also come to the realisation you my be from the very early 21st century and that you have some interesting attributes to you physically. We ran scans on your equipment and yourself. I hope you don't mind?"

"I see...At the end of the day you've brought me aboard to your ship, treated me medically and I was an unknown. I would have done the exact same thing in your position sir, but I'm surprised you don't think I'm completely insane though. I would think that in your position" Campbell confesses.

"Well based on the evidence from our tests and the opinion of Shepard here, I'm going to give you benefit of the doubt. I'll even offer our full assistance in whatever way we can with your mission, but first we may need your help due to the information you now may have stored in your mind from the prothean beacon that exploded. We have an offer for you...if you're interested that is." Anderson keeps a perfect 'poker face'.

Campbell eyes the 2 officers standing before him and then remembers Bishops voice in his dream before he woke. "If helping you gains me your support Captain, it would be my honor and duty as a marine."

"I'm glad to hear it Campbell. Please if you would come with me and the Commander here to my quarters, we will go over the details with you." Anderson says sounding pleased.

Campbell turns to Dr Chakwas "Hey Doctor, thanks for looking after me. i owe you one." he says in thanks.

"Just doing my job Mr Campbell." she smiles.

The Captain, Campbell and the Commander then leave the Med-bay to head for the Captain quarters.

Mess Hall : 5 hours later

The now Corporal Scott Campbell of the Systems Alliance sits in the Mess Hall with a dozen datapads laid out with various files on them. They contained the history of the Systems Alliance, dossiers on weapons, varies alien species, the Citadel & Council, alien planets and files on the SSV Normandy crew including all the officers he had met so far. He took his time reading Commander Shepard's file as it was very impressive, especially his actions in the Skyllian Blitz. His enhanced brain is storing all the information, though it will still be weird seeing all this that he's reading first hand. 'Knowledge is power marine' he thinks to himself 'When in enemy territory, its all about reconnaissance'.  
Since waking up and speaking to his now superior officers Campbell is feeling a bit more confident about his mission. Especially seeming that he'll have the Normandy's help...after he helps them first that is.  
He had accepted Captain Anderson's deal for help and was now given an identity in this universe, enlisted in the Alliance navy even though his rank is a low Corporal and not his former 2nd Lieutenant like back home, but it still allows him to go freely wherever he wants and his real background being kept a secret between a handful of People aboard the Normandy. An incredibly advanced ship even by this universes standards. Anderson had said to him that he'd be a valuable member of the ground team with his unique skills which made him smile a little, also that they're destination was now a place called the Citadel.  
He's also been given an Omni-tool which he hasn't been able to play around with yet to find out what it can do, but he does know how to accept text messaging and use its voice comm. He had something to eat which was barely edible, but that's the military for you in any universe. Campbell knew that this journey he is heading on may take some time and didn't know if he'd even see home again, but he did know one thing...that he wasn't going to give up.

**Authors note **

**I've decided to refer to Scott as Campbell from now on just in case anyone gets confused, as its the surnames people call each other by. Please I ask again if your like this story, please leave feedback or PM and I take all comments good and bad. Hope you like it so far.**

**Barnett**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer**** : Bioware owns all aspects of the Mass Effect franchise but could learn a lot from Fanfiction and its writers when it comes to Endings! **

Mass Intervention

Chapter 3

**Location**** : SSV Normandy **

Campbell is just Entering the CIC heading towards the cockpit to meet up with Shepard as they were approaching the Citadel after passing through their local mass relay.  
Considering the short time he had been in this universe, he was quite pleased with the progress he's made in his mission to stop Abraxas and find his brother. He had explained everything about why he was here to Anderson and Shepard back when they had discussed the deal for Campbell's help in going after Saren. They both believe him which was good, Abraxas is a threat to this whole galaxy and needs to be stopped.  
For the last hour he had been exploring the Normandy to get familiar with the ship with its various decks and facilities ie showers, cargo hold, armory, engine room etc. He still couldn't find the crew's sleeping quarters though. 'Where were the beds' he asked himself.  
The ships crew were nice enough and mostly seemed to assume that he'd just joined the Normandy's roster with Chief Williams from Eden Prime. He used the excuse of being born on Eden Prime and serving his entire career in the Alliance there, never being off of the planet. That makes up for any lack in knowledge about serving in space that he didn't read up on from the datapads earlier that LT Alenko had provided for him. Now on a first name basis, they had spoke briefly in the mess hall where he was working on fixing some computer consoles. He had explained to him about biotics and life as an L2, while Campbell spoke about his telekinetic abilities or 'TK' he calls it.

He had also introduced himself to the ships pilot, Jeff Moreau aka Joker. They spoke about his brittle bone condition called Vrolik Syndrome and how it never hindered him into becoming one of the best pilots in the Alliance. As a result of he rarely left the helm while on duty. They exchanged banter, making each other laugh and sparking a new friendship. He reminded him of his brother in that aspect.

As Campbell walks along the long corridor to the cockpit, he notices Alenko sitting in the co-pilot seat. Shepard stood at-ease behind Joker and there is also a woman with her back to him arched over a console and staring out of the window that caught his eye. He noticed her dark brown hair is tied in a military bun, her skin has a nice tanned tone to it, also her Alliance fatigues complimented her slim athletic figure and sweet looking ass.

'God damn! Talk about hot...who is she?' Campbell thinks to himself, while enjoying the view of her rear.

"Come to see the view have we Campbell?" Shepard remarks grinning, and Campbell snaps his head up to face him, clearly busted "I heard seeing the Citadel for the first time is a thing to remember " he adds.

Campbell took the hint "Yes sir. That's what I've been told." only for the woman to turn around and reveal herself to be none other than Chief Williams. He mentally facepalms embaressed, not recognising her without her armor "Hey Chief." he says with an awkward smile.

"Hey Campbell, I've been meaning to see you to thank you for what you did for me back on Eden Prime, I owe you one. I was really hostile towards you when we met and..."

Campbell cuts in putting up a hand "Don't mention it Chief, lets just call it a fresh start from now on. Deal?." he holds out his hand to shake which Williams gladly does so.

"Deal." she agrees smiling.

"Good timing Campbell, I was just bringing us into the Citadel space. See that tax-payers money at work." announces Joker.

"Maybe the tax-payers money can buy you a razor and lessons on how to shave. That or some better jokes." he quips with a wide smile.

"That beard of yours is getting a bit long joker." adds Alenko.

"Hey! This baby took me 4 weeks to get it like this. I think it makes me look distinguished" says the pilot rubbing his beard with pride.

The SSV Normandy soars through the space clouds approaching the Citadel arms, passing hundreds of other space traveling vessels, alien starships, frigates, shuttles, transports and warships. Many from various races and some Alliance, going to and from the Citadel.

"Look at the size of that ship." Ashley says once again staring out of the window. Campbell and Shepard both decide to have a look too.

"That's the Ascension_, _flagship of the Citadel fleet." Alenko explains.

"USS Enterprise eat your heart out." Campbell says out loud staring at the huge vessel.

"The Enterprise?" asks Ashley

Campbell grins "Nevermind Chief."

"Size isn't everything y'know." scoffs joker.

"Why so touchy Joker?" taunts Ashley.

"I'm just saying you need firepower too."

"Are you kidding, look at that monster, It's main gun could rip through the barriers of any ship in the Alliance fleet."

Shepard checks his Omni-tool "C'mon you three, Joker's had enough abuse. We need to get suited up and ready if we're going to meet the Captain at the airlock in 30." The four of them head down to the armory.

Campbell was loving his new armor provided by the Alliance military. Interlocking pieces of thick, ablative ceramic plates that easily attach and clip together around the body tightly under a thin body suit worn underneath. It was easily to maneuver in, like his old armor from the 21st century back in his universe. It was also fitted with a collapsible helmet from that's triggered from a button on the chest and energy shields that could protect you from at least 2 or 3 shots from a weapon.  
Ashley still has her Phoenix pink and white armor that she'd worn when she came aboard, she had managed to repair it and clean it up really well. The only differences Shepard's armor has to the armor worn by Alenko and Campbell, was that he had that red stripe going down his right arm and the N7 emblem on his chest that he'd noticed back on Eden Prime, most likely to show his rank. The ground team were fully armed up with various weapons fitted to their needs and skills, while Campbell opted for just the Striker heavy pistol attached to his waist and his sword which attached itself to his back. All the weapons collapsed on themselves by 50% of their size to make it easy to attach them to armor. From what Campbell had read about the weapons here, was that they are micro-scaled mass accelerators, using mass-reducing fields and magnetic force to propel miniature slugs to lethal speeds with no recoil. Using an internal block of metal and a projectile shaver, thousands of rounds of ammo is produced but fired too rapidly can overheat and will take a few seconds to cool down.

"I have to say guys, the military has seriously stepped up in the ways of weaponry and armor." Campbell confesses. "Back in my time, our weapons were steel, clips and bullets."

"No way! I remember learning that in history class at school, that must've been brutal to use?" says Ashley

"For me is was the norm, its what we trained with right from boot camp".

"I could show you how to use that weapon if you're unsure Campbell? Don't want you to hurt yourself." Ashley half teases.

"I'll be fine Chief thanks, I've done my reading and watched some vids on it. I'm a fast learner." says Campbell patting his Striker on his waist.

"We'll see."

Alenko jokes "Is it me Commander, or did that conversation just sound wrong? He starts laughing.

Shepard laughs himself and teases "Well the Chief is the 'pro' when it comes to handling weapons."

Ashley then swings and digs Shepard and Alenko in the arms hard while smiling and slightly blushing, but hides it well. "Assholes." she scoffs.

Campbell and Ashley meet each others eyes and pause just for an instant, before quickly looking away again.

They all hear the sound of the engines powering down and the claps securing the hull of the ship meaning they must have docked at the Citadel. Once suited up, they all get into what is the slowest elevator Campbell has been on. "So what's the deal with the sword Campbell? It's not made of anything we know off."

Sensing that his answer is anticipated by the whole team he says "It was given to me by a friend. I've trained and fought with it over the last 6 months '_against my own brother' _and its important in my mission to find my brother."

"Why?" asks Ashley.

"Long story." Campbell short answers, dropping a hint he don't want to talk about it which gets received clearly. They step out of the elevator and meet up with Captain Anderson where he leads the way of the ship.

"C'mon team, Human Ambassador Udina is waiting for us." says Anderson. Which they all follow while Anderson and Shepard explain to Campbell any bits of information he hasn't already read in the datapad files back on the Normandy.

As Campbell walkes through the numerous sections of the Citadel with the ground team he is literally speechless. The colossal deep-space station reminded him of pieces from every futuristic sci-fi series or movie he'd ever seen, from S_tar Wars to babylon 5 to Star Trek._  
'It was one thing seeing vids of this place on the datapads but...fuck me sideways!" he thinks to himself, clearly overwhelmed but didn't show it to the others and maintained his 'game face'. The Citadel was a hub of activity everywhere they went. The research he did about the Citadel on the Normandy most definatly paid off as he saw all kinds of different species of aliens, turian, asari, solarian, volus, krogan, hanar, elcor and of course humans. Minus the human citizens, it was the first time Campbell had seen any of these alien species in the flesh. He also knew that the Citadel was the political and culteral heart of inter-species relations and important to the galactic community.

Captain Anderson and the ground team arrived at the Citadel embassies and headed to Ambassador Udina's office.

As they entered they could hear Ambassador Udina arguing with turian Councillor. All 3 Citadel Councillors stood before the Ambassador via a holo projector. "This is an outrage! The Council would step in if the Geth attacked a turian colony." said Udina clearly angry.

"The turian's don't found colony's along the boarders of the Terminus systems..Ambassador." the Salarian Councillor fires back

"Humanity was well aware of the risks went you went into the Traverse." adds the asari councillor this time

"What about Saren? You can't just ignore a rogue Spectre! I demand action!."

Now the turian councillor responds "You don't get to make demands of the Council, Ambassador."

"Citadel security is investigating your charges against Saren and we will discuss their findings at the hearing, not before." the asari Councillor finally says. Then all 3 Councillors fade out ending the conversation.

Udina turns to face Anderson and the ground team walking over to them. Campbell, Ashley and Alenko stay back a few feet looking over the office balcony out of the way, but blatantly listening in on the conversation while Anderson and Shepard address Udina "Ah, Captiain Anderson. I see you brought half your crew with you."

Instantly Campbell takes a disliking to Udina, reminding him of the politicians back home in England 2013. 'What a fucking dickhead this guy is' he thinks to himself looking over to Ashley and Alenko probably thinking the same.

" Just the ground team from Eden Prime, in case you had any questions." answers Anderson

With an arrogant look Udina spits "I have the mission reports, I assume they're accurate?"

"They are...Sounds like you convinced the Council to give us an audience?" Anderson says, keeping his cool tone in his voice, not fazed by Udina's rudeness. Shepard stands next to Anderson with his hands behind his back loyally.

"They were not happy about it to say the least, Saren's their top agent and they don't like him being accused of treason."

Shepard speaks up "Saren is a murderer and a threat to every human colony out there, if they don't stop him, I will!"

'Fuck yeah Shepard! You tell that stuck up asshole...You're my kind of Commander.' Campbell thinks to himself.

"Settle down Commander, you've already done more than enough to jeopardize you candidacy for the Spectres. The mission on Eden Prime was a chance to prove you could get the job done. Instead Nihlus ended up dead and the beacon was destroyed." Udina complains.

"I never knew the Commander was due to become a Spectre?" Campbell says quietly to his fellow two eavesdroppers. Council Spectre was another topic he had read up about and found quite interesting.

"Neither did I." Ashley states.

Alenko holds up a hand and shakes his head slightly to silence us both.

"That's Sarens fault not his!" Anderson cuts in, defending Shepard.

"Then we better hope the C-sec investigation turns up evidence to support our accusations, otherwise the council might use this as a reason to keep you out of the Spectres." Udina looks to Shepard, "Come with me Captain, I want to go over a few things before the hearing. Shepard you and the other can meet us at the Citadel tower, top level. I'll make sure you all have clearance to get in." Udina then leaves with Anderson leaving the others behind.

"And that's why I hate politicians." says Ashley.

"I'm with you on that one Chief, doesn't seem to matter what year or universe it is. They're all just a bunch of candy asses." Campbell states, getting a grin from the other three as they left the office and headed back into the Embassy reception.

"I'm thinking if we take a walk round the Presidium to the Citadel tower elevator the Captain will probably already be there via air-taxi. Lets move." Suggested Shepard, and his team followed suit. Alenko and Shepard walked ahead and Ashley fell back a bit with Campbell.

"So Campbell, how you adjusting to the whole new universe/timeline thing?" Ashley asks..."Sounds so strange asking that question." she smirks.

"It's going better than I thought thanks Chief, and yeah I can understand what a question that must be like to ask. Even now I sometimes think that this is all one big dream I'm gonna wake up from...and then I don't. Having a false ID within the Alliance helps a bit as its easier if people don't know where I came from and why I'm here but I have to say, its not all bad. The experiences I'm having are unreal to say the least and then there is all you guys on the Normandy making me feel welcome. I appreciate it." Campbell replies. "Hopefully I can help you wrap up this situation with Saren quickly. Then the Captain can use the Normandy's resources to help me find my brother and the thing that brought him here with it. Abraxas."

"Abraxas. That thing that you're here to stop...you said its a threat to the galaxy. How bad are we talking here, Campbell." asks Ashley curiously.

"On a scale of 1-10?...20." he replies, whist looking at Ashley seriously. A few moments of silence pass as they continue walking together. "Bet your happy about being assigned to the Normandy, Chief?" Campbell asks, changing the subject. "I read your military file along with Shepard's, Anderson's and Alenko's, earlier back on the Normandy and noticed you hadn't served aboard an Alliance ship till now. How come?."

Ashley's eyes widens and she looks away so Campbell don't notice. "It's a long story Corporal." She replies, dropping a hint that she doesn't want to talk about it like Campbell had done earlier. 'Calm down Ash, he doesn't know.' she tells herself.  
"And yes to your first question, Campbell. The Normandy is a dream come true." she then adds, with a half smile.

"Not to mention there is that British, tall, dark and handsome 'super-soldier' from the 21st century, who's totally badass on board." Campbell jokes, 'biggin' himself up confidently in a half flirt.

"Really Campbell? I hadn't noticed...must be just you who thinks that." she says back with a full smile, upping the walking pace and catching up with the others.

"That's cold Chief, you could have humoured me just a little bit." he shakes his head and joins the others also.

The ground team arrived at the Citadel tower after yet another very long elevator ride. The Tower housed the Council chambers which consisted of a great hall filled with plant life, a few trees and even a waterfall in small, expertly located areas to give a relaxed and luxurious peaceful feeling. Diplomats from various races could be seen all over the complex, conversing with one another quietly.  
The team walked down a long corridor and up some stairs where they could see two turians arguing "Saren's hiding something! Give me more time, stall them." the turian in blue armor asked.

"Stall the Council? Don't be absurd. Your investigation is over Garrus." answers the more smartly dressed turian. He then turns his back and walks away.

The blue armored turian them addresses Shepard and the team, as they walk up to him. "Commander Shepard, I'm Garrus Vakarian. I'm the C-sec officer who was in charge of the investigation into Saren."

"Sounds like you really want to take Saren down, officer?." asks Shepard.

"I don't trust him one bit. Something about him rubs me the wrong way, call it gut instinct. He's a Spectre which means everything he touches is classified and I can't get hold of any hard evidence" he answers.

"I think the Council is ready for us Commander." Alenko cuts in, seeing the conversation going into much more depth.

Garrus nods his head to Shepard "Good luck Commander, maybe they'll listen to you." He then heads towards the elevator that the team arrived in.

Shepard leads the team across the floor and up two more sets of stairs where Anderson was waiting for them. "The hearing has already started Shepard, c'mon." They all follow Anderson and they all see that Udina is standing at the end of a platform that extends over a glass garden area, where he addressing the Citadel Council. The Council members seem to be on a balcony higher up. Each of them with a terminal in front of them. On the left of the Council chamber was Saren, via one big holo projector. His massive image looming over his accusers. Even Shepard thought he looked intimidating.  
Campbell stares up at Saren studying his appearance. He was physically larger than any of the turians he'd seen so far and had what looked to be a cybernetic arm. He then notices Saren is looking directly down at him. 'Why is he staring at me?' he thinks to himself curiously.

"The Geth attack is a matter of some concern, but there is nothing to indicate that Saren was involved in any way." states the asari Councillor.

"The investigation carried out by Citadel security turned up no evidence to support your charge of treason." adds the turian Councillor this time.

Looking frustrated Udina hits back "An eye witness saw Saren kill Nihlus in cold blood."

"We have read the reports on Eden Prime Ambassador, the testimony of one traumatised doc worker is hardly compelling proof. We are surprised you approached us with what little evidence you do have on this particular matter." said the salarian Councillor.

Saren turns his focus back to from Campbell to the Council. "I resent these claims of treason! Nihlus was a fellow Spectre...and a friend."

"That just let you catch him off-gaurd!" Anderson spits angrily.

"Ahh Captain Anderson...you always seem to be involved when humanity is making false charges against me." Saren said with a smug tone. "And this must be your protege Commander Shepard. The one let the prothean beacon get destroyed."

Shepard steps forward and looks up at the image of Saren angrily. "That mission was top secret. The only way you could know about the beacon is if you was there." Shepard's hate for Saren is clear to the fellow Normandy crew.

Saren crosses his arms in arrogance."With Nihlus gone his files were passed onto me. I read the Eden Prime report and I was unimpressed but what can you expect...from a _human_?" he taunts.

The last remark sparked Shepard's fury. "You can expect me to kill you the next time we meet." he promises, pointing his finger. The Council take note of the threat.

"Your species needs to learn its place Shepard. You're not ready to join the Council, you're not even ready to join the Spectres." spits Saren, his tone taking a one of disgust.

"He has no right to say that! That's not his decision!" Udina shouts, cutting in.

"Shepard's admission into the Spectres is not the purpose of this meeting." declares the asari Councillor, looking at Saren.

"This meeting has no purpose!" The Spectre fires back "The humans are wasting your time Councillor...and mine."

"You can't hide behind the Council forever." shouts Shepard, not caring that the Council can here him. All he knew was that Saren was going to pay for what he's done one way or another.

Captain Anderson senses that the hearing is going downhill, and in desperation decides to bring up the visions Shepard and Campbell had experienced. "There is still one outstanding issue, Commander Shepard and Corporal Campbell's visions. We believe they may have been triggered by the beacon."

Saren shakes his head. "Are we allowing 'dreams' into evidence now Councillors? How can I defend my innocence against this kind of testimony."

"I agree, our judgement must be based on facts and evidence." says the turian Councillor "not wild imaginings and reckless speculation."

The salarian Councillor asks "Do you have anything else to add Commander Shepard?"

Shepard glares at the Council representatives. "You've made your decision, I won't waste my breath."

The turian and salarian Councillors then each look to the asari shaking their heads with the their verdict. She nods in acknowledgement "The Council has found no evidence in connection between Saren and the Geth. Ambassador? Your petition to have him disbarred from the Spectres is denied."

Saren now feels very smug. "I'm glad to see justice was served, but before I go... Corporal Campbell?"

Campbell's eyes widen as Saren addresses him. 'What the fuck. I knew he was staring at me' he thinks to himself. "Can I help you?... asshole?" he responds, looking defiant following Shepard's example.

"I have a message for you from someone who is helping me with a mission that I'm currently working on…..'Maverick' sends his regards." The image of Saren fades out.

"This meeting is adjourned." The Council then leave their respective posts.

Campbell stands frozen in shock at the mention of his brothers nickname. He didn't think to get a lead on him so soon. 'He's here and he wanted me to know that he was working with that scumbag. But why? Is he taunting me?' he thinks to himself, and then realises that everyone else is staring at him. Campbell turns and walks off of the platform with Anderson and the others in tow, clearly wanting an explanation. When they walk down the stairs he turns to face them, but before he can say anything they are joined by Udina.

"It was a mistake bringing you into that hearing Captain, you and Saren have too much history. It made the Council question our motives, not to mention Shepards death threats."

"I know Saren, he's working with the Geth for one reason, to exterminate the entire human race. Every colony with have it at risk, every world we have in control is in danger, even Earth isn't safe! He has to be stopped." Anderson slams his fist into hands clearly agitated.

"I'm with the Captain, lets go find him and take this maniac down now in the Normandy!" says Campbell now knowing that Saren is working with his brother and that makes him so much more dangerous because that means Abraxas has an interest in Saren.

"Its not that simple Corporal, as a Spectre he's virtually untouchable, we need to find some way to expose him." says Udina

"What about Garrus, that C-sec investigator?" suggests Alenko "We saw him arguing earlier with the Executor."

"That's right, he was asking for more time to finish his report. It seemed like he was close finding something on Saren." says Ashley.

"Any idea where we can find him." asks Shepard.

"I have a contact in C-sec who can help us track Garrus down. His name is Harkin." suggests Udina.

"Forget it, they suspended Harkin last month for drinking on the job. I wont waste my time with that waste of space." states Anderson.

"You wont have to Captain, I don't want the Council using your past history with Saren as an excuse to ignore anything we might turn up. Shepard and his team will handle this." says Udina.

"You cant just cut Captain Anderson out of this investigation." cuts in Shepard to defend his Captain.

"The Ambassadors right Shepard, I need to step aside."

"I need to take care of some business. Captain, meet me in my office later." Udina then walks off towards the Council tower elevator.

Anderson looks at Campbell once Udina is out of sight. "So who is this 'Maverick' Campbell? Its seems that they're working with Saren."

"He's my brother Captain. It was his nickname from back home in the army. He was sending me a message through Saren, more or less letting me know that the game is on. He doesn't care about Saren or the Geth or having to kill innocent people, he does what Abraxas tells him to."

"Well this is far from a game son? Do you know why your brother might be working with Saren?" asks Anderson.

"Back before I came here, my friend told me that Abraxas was looking for an army to acquire. But not just to wipe out the human race but all life everywhere. Maybe Saren an the Geth are that army? I don't know for sure, but I can say that if Saren has my brother working with him then this mission just got a lot more dangerous for all of us. That's why I say we get back on the Normandy and go after them now, guns a blazing before they can execute whatever plans they have."

"I wish we could Campbell, but we have to do this Udina's way. We need to get the Councils backing first. Try to be patient, our goals are the same now, Corporal." replies Anderson.

"Yes, sir."

"Now, you can find Harkin probably getting drunk at Chora's den. Its a dingy little club in the lower sections of the wards."

"I thought you said he was a waste of space, Captain. Is it really worth checking it out?" asks Shepard.

"It couldn't hurt to go talk to him. Just be careful, I wouldn't call him reliable."

"You and Saren seem to have a history, sir. What happened?"

Anderson looks away as if remembering "About 20 years ago I was part of a mission in the Skyllian verge. I was working with Saren to find and remove a terrorist threat. Saren eliminated his target but a lot innocent people died along the way and the official records just...covered it all up, but I saw how he operates. No conscience, no hesitation. He'd kill a thousand civilians to end a war without a second thought."

"Killing innocents doesn't end wars, it causes them." Shepard states.

"I know how the world works Commander, sometimes you're forced to make unpleasant decisions but only if there is no other way. Saren doesn't even look for another option. He's twisted, broken, he likes the violence, the killing and he knows how to cover his tracks."

"That just makes me want to kill him even more, Captain. But I need you all to do something for me because if I'm with you to see this through to the end, I need you to let me handle my brother, he's my problem and trust me when I say that it's safer that way." Campbell looks at everyone one at a time.

Anderson nods "I speak for everyone here, Campbell, when I say you can handle your brother in which ever way you see fit. But if you fail and he is still a threat, then we will take it from there."

"understood, thank you, sir."

"You all should get going, I'll be over in the Ambassadors office if you need anything else. Good luck." Anderson then leaves following Udina's footsteps.

The team then depart themselves, heading for the wards with Commander Shepard leading the way.

**Authors note **

**Next up Chora's den, Garrus, Tali and Wrex joins the team, learn the secret of the sword and Saren proved a traitor.**

**As usual I ask if you have any feedback or comments if you like this story or have any pointers or tips. It would be very much appreciated, thank you. Peace...**

**Barnett.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer**** : Bioware owns all over the characters in Mass Effect and all aspects of the game...and know how to fuck up a great 5 year franchise in 10mins.**

Mass Intervention

Chapter 4

**Location**** : Citadel wards**

After a taxi ride, a walk and a few more long elevator rides, the ground team reach the Upper wards of the Citadel. Campbell kept quiet most of the way down, thinking of his brother making himself known to him via Saren back in the hearing.  
While walking along through the crowds of numerous species that were scattered everywhere doing their day to day activities, Ashley clearly was impressed by what she saw of the Upper Wards section of the Citadel. "This is so much better than the Presidium, I wonder how expensive it is to live here?"

"Well if the military pay still sucks ass like it did back in 2013, I'd say start saving now." says Campbell. "What about you Shepard? Could you see yourself living here?"

"I grew up living on various Alliance vessels and stations due to both my parents being in the military, so I'd say no. I guess you can say the Normandy is my home for now, but I'd definitely come here for shoreleave." Shepard then realises that Alenko has split from the group and is standing over by a clear area of the balcony that overlooks the Citadel. "What's up with Alenko?"

They all walk over to see what Alenko is distracted by when it becomes quite clear that it's the stunning view. They stood side by side leaning on the wall staring the amazing view of the backdrop overlooking the Citadel arms. Huge brightly lit populated cities ran along the extension of each arm buzzing with traffic. 'It's like each arm has it's own New York City running along it' Campbell thinks to himself.

"Holy shit this place is big." comments Alenko.

"Is that your professional opinion sir?" asks Ashley in a rhetorical question grinning.

"This isn't a station...its a city." states Shepard in awe.

"There must be millions here, it cant be possible to track of everyone coming and going." wonders Alenko.

"This makes Jump-Zero look like a porta-jon, and that's the largest deep space staiton the Alliance has." Ashley says comparing.

Alenko leans his forearms on the wall to support his weight "Jump-Zero is big but this is a whole other scale. Look at the size of those ward arms. How do they keep all that mass from falling apart?"

"The Council represents more races than I thought, no wonder they're careful with newcomers." adds Shepard.

Alenko looks to Shepard "They probably want to just keep everything running smooth, it must be hard keeping all these cultures working together."

"Maybe they just don't like humans." Ashley cuts in a criticising manner.

Shepard looks over at Ashley not knowing what to think of her brash statement and considers asking her about it when Campbell speaks up jokingly.

"How can anyone not like humans...We have a beautiful planet, Manchester United, the 'foot long Subway special', Rock and Roll, Beer, Baywatch...what else...oh and the emotion called love."

Shepard shakes his head at Campbell's comment grinning "Uh-huh...I guess according to the old vids, we have everything they want."

"Well if anyone expects to get me in a tin foil mini-skirt and thigh high boots, then I want dinner first...Sir." Ashley blushes wide eyed with horror and looks away at what she just blurted out without thinking. 'Jesus Christ Ash, you can't say that in front of your Commanding officer' she thinks to herself.

"That will be enough Chief." Alenko says amused and realising her embarrassment.

"At-ease Lieutenant, I can't see her in a skirt any ways." says Shepard reassuringly.

"Damn straight you can't!" says Ashley, trying to rectify the awkwardness looking between Shepard and Alenko. Then she spots Campbell eye-balling her with the most cheekiest grin on his face.

"C'mon, lets move out. I overheard someone saying that Chora's Den is over in the lower wards near the markets." says Shepard, leading the way with Alenko right behind him, leaving Ashley with Campbell still grinning.

"What are you staring at _Corporal_?" Ashley tries to silence him by pulling rank, but can't help but smile slightly herself.

Campbell stands there one arm leaning against the wall, striking a _'slick' pose_ with a smile "How you doin?." he says just like Joey from _'Friends', _then bursts out laughing.

Ashley digs him in the arm hard with a smile, knowing the cheesy reference as they still show re-runs of classic episodes of _'Friends' _even now. "Move it Corporal 'Cheese_'_, before the next one lands on your jaw." she orders, feeling a whole new rush of heat to her cheeks but quickly shakes it off.

Campbell moves on as ordered "Y'know, you can save the foreplay till after dinner Chief." he laughs again referring to the dig he just got. All he got back in a response was the most evil of death stares a woman could give with her arms crossed. "Okay okay, I'm shutting the fuck up now." he says surrendering.

The team head through into the lower wards section of the Citadel, which was very much dingy like the Captain had said. As they approach a sign posted archway which says 'Chora's Den' with a lit arrow above it, they are spotted by three armed turians on the other side of a square shaped walkway outside the Chora's Den enterance. "It's them!" One of the turians shouts opening fire, the rest splitting up and taking cover.

"Ambush! Get down and spread out!" Shepard shouts to the others as he returns fire.

Alenko and Ashley follow Shepard's instantly. Spreading out along the corner of the opposite side of the walkway to the armed assassins, using the railing as cover and returning fire themselves. Campbell still has yet to emerge from the archway, just only taking brief glances around the corner making a mental note to where the assassins are positioned.

"They must be Sarens men!" shouts Alenko ducking as a bullet hits his shields.

"Way to state the obvious sir!" Ashley shouts sarcastically. "They have regenerative shields built in their armor too. I've put at least 3 rounds into each of these guys already." She looks around seeing that there are one of them is missing. "You joining the fight Campbell?" she asks after firing several rounds of her M7 Lancer assault rifle.

"Shepard, Alenko, Chief... on my mark, the three of you give me cover with one hell of a wave of bullets. You copy?" shouts Campbell, unsheathing his Katana from its holster behind his back. He charges up his TK powers.

"What are you planing Campbell? The last time I checked, I gave the orders here!" shouts Shepard.

"Trust me Commander, this needs to end now...Ready 3...2...1...Mark!" The three marines proceed to fire their weapons in consistent waves to give one another a chance for their weapons to cool down between overheating.  
A second later in one swift movement, Campbell is through the archway and on the edge of the railing next to Shepard. He leaps up, flipping high into the air and across the 25ft gap to the other side of the walkway, landing on one knee crouching. Now facing the first assailant. Before the assassin has a chance to register he's there, Campbell with uncanny speed, rushes in the direction of his target pulling him forward with his TK, bringing his katana up and through into his mid-section slicing him in half with ease as if his armor and shields were non-existant.  
Within a heartbeat, Campbell is just feet away from his 2nd opponent at the top corner of the walkway, deflecting two bullets with his free hand using his TK and his shields absorbing another. He jumps forward spinning his body in the air, and with his katana he decapitates the 2nd assassin landing in a crouched position. He looks up at the 3rd assassin who stands backing away in shock and fear with his rifle raised. Campbell just smiles at him holstering his katana, knowing he doesn't need to move as the assassin suddenly lifts high upwards and helpless in a blue biotic aura. Shepard, Alenko and Ashley spray the assassin with a hail of bullets. His armor might as well now be made of tissue as he falls a bloody mess.

They all stand holstering their weapons. Shepard walks up to Campbell. "Campbell!... A word!"

Campbell's proud look on his face disappears when he sees the pissed look of Shepard's. 'What the fuck did I do wrong?' he thinks to himself.

"Corporal, lets get this straight. I'm the commanding officer here, which means I give the orders as I'm responsible for the lives of my team! I don't care who you really are, where you're from or what you can do. You give me a 'heads up' before you pull a stunt like that. Do i make myself clear?" Shepard keeps eyes locked with Campbell's.

Campbell looks down remembering what it was like to be in command from serving back home in Iraq. Realising Shepard's right he looks back up. "Your right sir, it won't happen again, I'm sorry. Its just been a while since I've worked as part of a team."

Shepard's face took a more friendly look. "That being said Campbell...nice moves." he then smiles "Nice moves indeed." He pats Campbell on the shoulder whilst walking past the bloody corpses to the entrance of Chora's Den.

Alenko walks past, the blue glow of his biotics fading "Remind me not to get on your bad side Campbell." he says grinning.

Ashley then walks past Campbell with a half crocked smile "Not bad, but you do realise that sword of yours won't be any good in an open battlefield you know right." She teases but deep down she's very impressed. 'If he's as good with a gun as he is with that sword then I'm glad to have him with us.' she thinks to herself.

"Not bad?...Not Bad? Even I thought I was awesome that time. And it's a _Katana_ by the way Chief." scoffs Campbell, following the others into the club.

Chora's Den was a relatively small strip club with the bar being round in shape in the middle. Table coves were spread around facing the bar, some had human or asari dancers with paying customers in them. It reeked of smoke, sweat and alcohol and the majority customers looked seedy to say the least.

The team walked through the multi-cultural crowd around the club looking for Harkin. Shepard decides to ask for him at the bar while the others wait.

"Typical...a million light years away from where humanity began, and we walk into a bar filled with men drooling over half-naked women shaking their asses on a stage...I can't tell if that's funny or sad?" says Ashley.

"What...you don't think there here because of the food?" jokes Alenko.

Shepard comes back from the bar "I've found Harkin, he's sitting over there next to those krogan."

"Wow, that's one big ass alien." states Campbell.

They walk over but the bigger red armoured krogan with the long scars trailing down his face and neck stands in their way, arguing with the smaller one. "Back off Wrex, Fist told us to take you down if you showed up." says the smaller krogan.

"What are you waiting for? I'm standing right here. This is Fist's only chance, if he's smart he'll take it." warns the bigger krogan Wrex.

"He's not coming out Wrex, end of story." Says the smaller krogan shifting his weight showing that he's nervous.

"The story's only beginning whelp." He points at the smaller krogan with a growl and turns, walking through the four marines as they move out of the way. "Out of my way humans, I have no quarrel with you."

"What was that all about?" Alenko asks openly.

"Who knows, lets just try not get caught in the middle." suggests Ashley, watching the huge krogan stomp away.

"C'mon, lets get this over with and get out of here." says Shepard, walking up to Harkin and the rest follow.

Harkin sits back at his table with a glass of scotch in his hand. He sees the four marines approaching and he eyes the armoured woman up and down with a seedy grin, thinking obscene thoughts. "Hey there peaches, you come to give ol Harkin the rough treatment? Why don't you come sit on my lap and I'll tell you the first thing that pop's up?" He gestures by patting his knee to the brunette.

"Urgh, you're disgusting!" comments Alenko but Harkin ignores him.

Ashley feels sick at the proposition. "I'd rather drink a cup of acid while chewing a razor blade."

Campbell's blood starts to boil at the sheer disrespect Harkin is showing Ashley. 'My god there are one hundred different ways I could kill you right now you scumbag, I'm out there defending dickheads like you.' he thinks to himself.

"You trying to hurt my feelings peaches? You'll have to do better than that, I've been in C-sec 20 years and called every name in the book." he spits back still eyeing her up.

Ashley clinches her fist "How about you call me 'peaches' one more time and you'll be picking your teeth up off of the floor you worthless piece of..."

"We're here looking for Garrus Vakarian, a C-sec officer." Shepard cuts in, leaning on the table in front of Harkin gaining his attention, clearly pissed off himself.

"Okay no need for violence, Garrus you say? You must be Anderson's crew. Poor bastard still trying to take Saren down, eh?" I know where Garrus is but you gotta tell me something first." He takes a gulp of scotch. "Did the Captain let you in on his big secret?"

Shepard leans in a bit further clearly with a face of rage "Don't waste my time Harkin.

"But its all related don't you see? The Captain used to be a Spectre. Didn't know that, did you? It was all very hush-hush. The first human ever given that honor. Then he blew it. Screwed up his mission so bad they kicked him out. Of course, he blames Saren. Says the turian set him up.

"Why should I believe a pathetic drunk like you?" asks Shepard.

"Fine ask Anderson, I bet he tells you. He's too stupid and proud to lie to your face." Harkin shrugs.

"You said they covered all this up. How did you hear about all this?" Shepard stands back upright getting away from the stale stench of Harkins alcohol breath.

"Like I said before, I've spent 20 years working cases here on the Citadel. People on this station love to talk. Secrets are like herpes, if you got'em, you might as well spread'em around." he looks over at Ashley. "And I know exactly where I'd start." he chuckles.

"That's it!" Campbell is the first to react this time. He extends his hand upwards using his TK to lift Harkin out of his chair, sliding him up the wall and forces his arms apart. Then he takes several glasses that are on the table and breaks them, levitating up the sharp pointed pieces and presses them against Harkin's throat just enough to scare him. He looks over to Alenko and Ashley with a sly wink to let them know he's not going to kill him.

"WHOA! What the fuck are you doing? Let me down!" the perverted drunk pleads loudly with fear clear in his voice.

"You're a shitstain on the underwear of society, Harkin...So last chance. Where the fuck can we find Garrus Vakarian?" Campbell asks in a deadly tone. He then strangely opens up his Omni-tool on his raised arm and sends a quick text message to Alenko.

"Deal." Alenko says with a smile watching Harkin squirm, while Ashley just raises an eyebrow at the two marines.

Shepard considers telling Campbell to stand down as he would normally do things a bit more by the book but Harkin has seriously pissed him off too with his utter disrespect of an Alliance marine. "Better answer the man Harkin." he says crossing his arms.

"Okay okay! Go and speak to Dr Michel on the other side of the wards, she runs a Med-clinic and Garrus was sniffing around there wanting to talk to her. That's all I know please please let me down!" Harkin begs.

"C'mon team, we're done here." Shepard turns to leave walking for the exit to the club which the rest follow minus one. He stops looking back. "You coming Campbell?"

"Sorry Commander I've changed my mind, I'm just gonna kill him." Campbell then pulls his hand back as if to throw something.

"WHAT!NO!" screams Harkin, while he urinates himself in full view of the whole bar to which many of the occupants just burst out laughing.

Campbell lets go of Harkin and he falls back into his chair shaking. Shepard just shakes his head grinning at Campbell as he walks past him to the others and out of Chora's Den.

"Told you I could make him do it, you owe me 20 credits Kaidan." Campbell says to the Lieutenant, smiling after winning their little wager.

Alenko laughs "Worth every credit, Corporal."

"That's what that message what about. I cant believe you guys didn't let me in on some of that action." complains Ashley with a wide smile, while Alenko wires the credits to Campbell via his Omni-tool.

"That's enough fun and games for today, lets move out." Shepard leads the way back to the Upper Wards via the way they came. He'd seen the entrance to the Med-clinic earlier and was eager to find Garrus now that they had a lead.

"Why didn't Captain Anderson tell us he used to be a Spectre?" Ashley asks openly as they walk.

"Maybe it's not true, Harkin was an ass. I bet he was just trying to screw with our heads." answers Alenko

"I'll ask him later on when we catch up with him at Udina's office." says Shepard, curious to find out himself.

All four marines were happier to be in the more pleasant area of the Upper wards and away from the not so attractive Chora's Den. Campbell fells a little discomfort as he weaves in and out of the busy walkways, but he just shrugs it off. They come to the door signposted 'Med-clinic' to which they hear a woman scream behind.

"Sounds like trouble, be ready." Shepard tells his team as he draws his pistol.

The door opens with a low chime and the marines can see 4 armed humans surrounding a red-haired human woman on the other side of the room. Garrus Vakarian is already there pistol at the ready, hidden behind a waist-high bulkhead that split the room in two and sneaking around it clearly looking to get the drop on the armed thugs.

"I didn't tell anyone I swear!" cries the redhead.

"That was smart Doc." says the top thug menacingly, "Now stay smart by keeping your mouth shut if you see Gar...What the hell!" the man grabs the doctor, pulling her close toact as a human shield as the 4 marines flood into the room with their weapons aimed at the 4 thugs. "Who are you!" he shouts at the marines.

"Let her go!" orders Shepard shifting to the side of the room, near where Garrus is still out of sight. Keeping his pistol trained on the thug holding the doctor as a shield. He thinks about trying to take the man out, but he can't be sure the doctor won't be hurt in the process. Alenko, Campbell and Ashley keep their weapons aimed at the rest of the thugs standing side by side by the bulkhead, ready to use it as cover as soon as the situation kicks off.

The thug holding the doctor glares at Shepard, keeping his own gun aimed at him "I don't think..."

Before the thug can finish his sentence, Garrus springs from his cover and fires a single shot which hits the thug right between the eyes, leaving a bleeding hole in the man's head before diving to the side taking cover. The doctor screams ducking out of the way and crawls behind a panel hiding out of sight. As soon as the first shot is fired the three marines take cover by the bulkhead, while Shepard covers behind a pillar. At the same time the remaining thugs back off, taking cover themselves and firing randomly.

Campbell realises that there's not enough room to maneuver to take these punks out with his katana without losing his shields and getting shot first. "Shepard! These candy asses have no armor. You think you guys can take them out if I disarm them?" asks Campbell whilst looking at the rest of the team, holstering his pistol.

"Do it!" Shepard agrees with a nod as do Ashley and Kaiden.

Campbell charges his TK. He jumps to his feet and by raising one hand with a gesture, he rips away the panel that two of the thugs are covering behind, exposing them. Whilst gesturing with the other hand, he pulls their weapons right out from their grips. Then last thug that is ducked out of Campbell's line of sight, pops into view and fires three slugs into his shields, taking them down. Using his enhanced reflexes, Campbell swiftly ducks to the side just as the fourth bullet misses him by an inch as he gets to cover. "Still one gun left!" he shouts.

"Got it!" shouts Alenko as his biotics charge up around his body with a glowing blue aura. He stands to his feet and throws the armed thug into the wall so hard the snapping of his neck is clearly heard. Shepard pops around the corner from the pillar, firing several rounds into the one of the now unarmed and exposed thugs, while Ashley sprays the other one with a burst of her rifle ending the firefight. "All clear Commander." Ashley finalises.

Campbell jumps to his feet with a wide smile "Now is that teamwork or what? Forget high fives, gimme some big tens Chief!" he says raising both open palmed hands up in a gesture of celebration, common from back in his universe in 2013.

Ashley just looks at him confused, holstering her rifle, clearly not knowing what he's talking about. Alenko gives him a similar look.

Campbell turns to Alenko hands still raised as embarrassment starts to settle in "Kaidan?...no?...ok then, no big tens in 2183." he drops his hands, blushing in surrender and gives a thumbs up instead "Good job people."

Kaiden and Ashley look at each other grinning. Garrus helps Dr Michel to her feet "Dr Michel, are you hurt?"

"No, I'm ok thanks to you. All of you." she answers.

"That was perfect timing Shepard, you gave me clear shot at that bastard." says Garrus in thanks.

"I saw it Garrus. The shot was was reckless and you could've hit Dr Michel." Shepard fires back disapprovingly.

"I'm sorry Commander...I just reacted when the doctor got taken hostage." explains Garrus in defence.

Shepard turns to Dr Michel "Doctor, I know those men threatened you. But if you tell us who they work for, we can protect you."

"They work for Fist. They wanted to shut me up, keep me from telling Garrus about the quarian." Dr Michel explains, still clearly emotional and tearful.

"What quarian?" asks Shepard.

"A few days ago a quarian came by my office. She'd been shot, but she wouldn't tell me who did it. I could tell she was scared, probably on he run." Dr Michel continues pacing back and forth a bit. "She asked me about the Shadow Broker. She wanted to trade information in exchange for a safe place to hide so I put her in contact with Fist. He's an agent for the Shadow Broker.

"Not any more." Garrus cuts in. "Now he works for Saren, and the Shadow Broker isn't too happy about it."

"Fist betrayed the Shadow Broker?" questions Dr Michel "That's stupid even for him. Saren must have made him quite the offer."

"That quarian must have something Saren wants. Something worth crossing the Shadow Broker to get." figures Garrus.

"She must have something that proves he's a traitor. Did the quarian mention anything about Saren or the Geth doctor?" asks Shepard.

"She did actually. The information she was going to trade. She said it had something to do with the Geth."

"She must be able to link Saren to the Geth Shepard. There's no way the Council can ignore this!"

Garrus says almost excited.

"I think it's time we paid Fist a visit." Shepard says with a grin.

"Look Shepard, I know this is your show, but I want to bring Saren down as much as you do. I'm coming with you." Garrus says sounding like he wasn't giving Shepard a choice.

"You're a turian. Why do you want to bring him down?"

"I couldn't find the proof I needed in my investigation. But I knew what we really going on. Saren's a traitor to the Council and a disgrace to my people!" Garrus explains clearly.

"I guess that's a good enough reason. Welcome to the team Garrus." Shepard offers out his hand to shake, which Garrus takes gladly. "But remember, this is my operation and we do things my way."

Garrus nods "Yes, Commander, and thanks. You know, we aren't the only ones going after Fist. The Shadow Broker hired a krogan bounty hunter named Wrex to take him out."

"Yeah we seen him down at Chora's Den. He's one big bounty hunter." cuts in Ashley.

"Shepard then looks to be in deep thought "You know, a krogan like that could be useful on our side."

"Last time I heard, he was at the C-sec academy. Fist accused him of making threats so we braught him in for a little talk. If you're quick you can catch him at the academy before he leaves." states Garrus.

"We'll head there after we've dealt with Fist." Shepard announces. "Move out people."

The now four marines plus one turian, head out back towards the lower markets to Chora's Den. Campbell all of a sudden feels a wave of discomfort in his head again.

"Campbell, your nose is bleeding." notices Ashley. "You feeling ok?"

"Yeah I'm fine Chief, must've done it during the shoot-out back in the Clinic." Campbell quickly wipes away the blood and its seems to stop as quickly as it started. "You see, its already stopped."

Ashley shrugs taking Campbell's word for it, But Campbell still feels a little shaken. 'I don't ever get nose bleeds, especially since Bishop recruited me. What's going on here?' he thinks to himself while catching up with the others.

**Authors note**

**Sorry to do this to you guys who are reading, but I got to split this chapter into two pieces and leave it there, as I'm literally flying to Spain in 8 hrs for two weeks with the girlfriend. I wanted to get this chapter up before I left.**

**Also, I won't be updating till I'm back from Spain either. What I will be doing while I'm there is working on some 'flashback scenes with Campbell and his brother explaining how they got their powers, how they were chosen by Bishop and Abraxas and the importance of their Katana's. Then I'll integrate them into future chapters at the right times. This chapter was my first attempt at writing action scenes to if you like or dislike, please drop me some feedback or PM letting me know what you think as your opinion matters. Till next time...Peace**

**Barnett**


	6. Chapter 6

**Authors note**

**Back from my hols now and ready to continue, so here's a chapter for you guys who are following this story. Chapters will go back to going up every 4-5 days again now...Hopefully. Thanks for being patient and hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer****: Bioware owns all aspects of Mass Effect and it's characters. **

Mass Intervention

Chapter 5

**Location**** : Citadel Lower Wards**

The ground team, with the addition of Garrus, once again travel down towards Chora's Den with Shepard leading the way. Not much was said between the squadmates as they had already been in two firefights already and things were starting to get tense. They were all fully aware of how they needed the information that the quarian had on Saren.

They came to the walkway outside Chora's Den where they had killed Saren's men earlier. Their bodies had all been removed from the scene and where the loud dance music could easily have been heard before from inside the club, there now was nothing but an eerie silence.

"Looks like it's shut down, Commander." Announces Ashley, unholstering her assault rifle. The rest of the team follows suit and arm themselves.

"Fist knows we're coming. You can expect resistance." adds Garrus.

"Okay then, I'll take point. Stay sharp people." orders Shepard. He opens the entrance to the club, taking a quick glance inside. He was instantly fired upon making him glad that his N7 armor had shields, but he still managed to get a good look inside though before pulling back and closing the door.

"Shit! The place is full of Fist's thugs." He quickly thinks of which way to proceed "Chief, Campbell, you take the left side around the bar. LT Alenko and I, will go around to the right. Garrus, you take out the two thugs on the stage above the bar and then provide cover fire to whoever needs it from our six. Lets move."

With Garrus in position a few feet from the door with his sniper at the ready, Shepard opens the door rushing inside firing widely, with a biotically charged Alenko sticking to his side, forcing the thugs to take cover. At very the same time, Garrus takes aim at the two thugs above the bar and fires, killing the first with a clean headshot. The second thug falls an instant later.

Campbell and Ashley then move in to the left side of the bar firing wildly, taking cover behind a metal table. Campbell glances over to the right seeing Shepard and Alenko, making quick work of the thugs in their path with a mixture of gunfire and biotics. He turns back to Ashley.

"Chief, cover me while I draw their fire, taking out as many as I can, then you get the drop on the ones that's left."

Ashley agrees to the plan with a nod. "GO." she shouts popping up from the the table firing her assault rifle.

Campbell then runs out from behind the table and towards where the thugs are taking cover. He drops to his knees, leaning backwards and slides along the floor past the thugs, firing his pistol with pinpoint accuracy, killing both men with two swift headshots. Two more thugs pop up from behind the bar with shotguns aimed at him, but Ashley quickly disposes of them fast with a quick burst off her rifle. She looks over to Campbell, who gives her an appreciative nod. Then she spots the krogan bouncer coming up behind him. "Look out!." she warns, but its too late.

The krogan grabs Campbell by the throat and lifts him up, causing him to drop his pistol. Campbell grabs onto the krogans arm, bringing his knee upwards and slams it into the huge bouncer's jaw with a crunch, causing the krogan to drop him.  
Ashley, now with a clear shot, fires several rounds into the chest of the krogan, putting him down. She walks over to Campbell and extends a hand, helping him up whilst looking at the two thugs he killed with headshots.

"So, you do know how to use a gun I see." she grins.

"Chief, I was a 2nd Lieutenant in the British Royal Marines for 9 years." he states, "I'm more than familiar with guns of all types and sizes. It's just that when I got my 'abilities' and this baby.", he gestures to his katana on his back, "I've never really needed to use them since...Until I got here that is."

He steps past her and picks up his Striker pistol, but when he looks back up, he sees that the krogan has gotten back to his feet and is right behind Ashley. Before he even has a chance to react, a single shot is fired from behind him hitting the krogan right between the eyes, blood spraying the wall behind him as his limp body drops to the floor. Campbell and Ashley both turn to see Garrus lowering his sniper rifle.

"Krogans have regenerative abilities, making them tough 'sons of bitches' to kill." explains Garrus.

"Noted...and thanks." says Campbell in acknowledgement. Ashley just gives Garrus a simple nod and walks away, which Campbell thought was a little harsh seeming Garrus just possibly saved her life.

With all of Fist's thugs now dead, Campbell, Ashley and Garrus meet up with Shepard and Alenko on the other side of the club's bar and Shepard leads the way through the hallway to another door. They open it up only to be faced by two, very scared, but armed men with their pistols raised.

"Stop right there, don't come any closer!" One man says in a shaky voice.

"Warehouse workers. All the real guards must be dead." says Garrus, clearly not intimidated.

"Stay back or we'll shoot!" the other man speaks up this time.

Shepard doesn't even think these men are worth killing. He just looks at them with one very pissed of look. "This would be a good time to find somewhere else to work, don't you think?"

The two workers look to each other and lower their guns. "Yeah. Yeah, right. That's a good idea. We never liked fist anyway." The men slowly walk past the team and out of sight.

"I would've never have thought of that." admits Garrus.

"Shooting people isn't always the answer." says Ashley, not even looking in Garrus's direction.

"C'mon, Fist's office must be through that door." says Shepard, walking onward through the next door. Sticking to the wall and peeking around the corner, Fist spots him, firing a shot into Shepard's shields.

"Why do I have to do everything myself? Time to die, little soldiers!" Fist then activates two turrets on each side of him.

Shepard looks over to Garrus, "Garrus, can you overload those turrets?"

"Not a problem, Commander." Garrus steps up to Shepard's side, opening up his omni-tool and overloads both turrets with a spark of electricity.

Shepard then hands a grenade to Campbell, "How's your throwing arm?" he asks with a grin.

"More than sufficient, sir." he replies smiling back.

Shepard dives across the opening of Fist's office into a roll whilst throwing his grenade and it attaches itself onto the right turret. Fist trails him with his pistol, trying to get a shot on him, but then Campbell pops around the corner throwing his grenade and it attaches itself onto the left turret. Fist don't know which direction to aim at before both the grenades explode sending Fist flying forward. Alenko catches him biotically and pins him onto the floor.

Shepard walks over and places his foot on Fists chest and aims his shotgun right to his face.

"Wait! Don't kill me! I surrender!"

"Where's the quarian?" Shepard, now presses the gun onto Fist's forehead.

"She's not here. I don't know where she is. That's the truth!"

"He's lying." says Ashley, crossing her arms.

"Shoot him in the kneecap, sir. He'll soon start talking." adds Campbell, grinning with his arms crossed.

"I want the truth, now! So start explaining before I really lose my temper." demands Shepard.

Fist considers is options "The quarian isn't here. Said she'd only deal with the Shadow Broker himself."

"Impossible. The Shadow Broker only works through his agents." Garrus cuts in.

"Nobody meets the Shadow Broker. Ever. Even I don't know his identity. But she didn't know that. I told her I'd set a meeting up. But when she shows up, it'll be Saren's men waiting for her." explains Fist.

Shepard pushes Fist's head to the floor with his pistol "I want the location. Now!"

Fist takes a big gulp. "Here on the wards. The back alley by the markets. She's supposed to him them right now. You can make it if you hurry."

"I never want to see you on the Citadel again Fist. If I do, then I will kill you. Is that clear?" Warns Shepard.

"Don't worry. You'll never see me again! I swear!" he promises.

Shepard straight away turns and heads out Fists office. "Lets move, that quarian's gonna need our help." The team follows suit behind Shepard.

Just as they're about to re-enter the bar area of the club, more of Fist's men are there and start firing. Shepard takes two hits to his shields before taking cover. "More hostiles, get down!."

They all fall back spreading out, but Campbell, knowing time is of the essence has an idea. "Don't worry Commander, I've got this. Just give me some cover fire. Trust me."

"Go for it, Corporal." he replies, and the team open fire.

Campbell sprints past the others and dives with his striker pistol raised into the bar area whilst firing at the fire extinguisher on the wall next to the two thugs. Its explodes, creating a white cloud of smoke. Landing in his back Campbell flips back to his feet in a heartbeat. Using the obscurity of the smoke and using his enhanced senses, he quickly maneuvers between the two thugs whilst taking his katana out from behind his back. Then with two unbelievably fast and silent slices from his blade, the threat is over. The sound of two bodies dropping to the floor are clearly heard with a thud.

"It's all clear. The bad guys are all dead now and we gotta move." announces Campbell, coming into view as the cloud disperses.

"Nice job, Campbell." congratulates Shepard, darting past him towards the exit of the club. Campbell just nods as the rest of the team follow Shepard, with Campbell following last in silence, knowing there wasn't any time for banter now.

The team arrive at the back alley just in time as it looks like the meeting has only just started nearby at the bottom of a stairwell. They take cover behind metal crates on each side of the of the stairwell. They see the quarian standing there out in the open, then a turian merc approaches.

"Did you bring it?" asks the turian merc.

"Where's the Shadow Broker? Where's Fist?" demands the quarian.

"They'll be here." he replies, stroking her shoulder. "Where's the evidence?

The quarian slaps his hand away. "No way. The deals off."

The turian merc takes a few steps back. Then two armored and armed salarians appear from hiding.

The quarian quickly realising she's been set up, tosses a grenade at the feet of the salarians. It explodes, knocking the them off of their feet. She turns to run.

Campbell sees the turian merc reach for his gun, he quickly reaches out with his arm using his TK and the turian suddenly rises up twenty feet into the air. Campbell then swings his arm down and the turian slams into the ground head first with such velocity, that his body rips apart upon impact in a bloody mess. The quarian has trouble believing what she saw just happen before her, stepping back whilst looking for the nearest exit.

The two salarians then start to get back to their feet, but Shepard already has his sniper aimed. As do Ashley and Garrus. With a several quick and loud shots from the three snipers, the salarians are dead before they manage to stand.

They all holster their weapons, heading down the stairs to the quarian. Shepard taking point, approaches her with his hands up to show that he's not here to hurt her. "It's okay miss, we came to help. We're with the Alliance."

The quarian relaxes a little, but is still very shaken. She holsters her shotgun that she still had out, just in case the strangers turned out to be hostile. Her environmental suit made her difficult for Shepard to read, especially with her mask obscuring her face. You can only see the glow from her eyes through the glass.

"Fist set me up! I knew I couldn't trust him!" she says out loud to no one in particular. Her voice has a metallic quality through her enviro-suit.

"You don't need to worry about fist no more, Miss. He's been taken care of." Campbell says reassuringly, when of a sudden he begins to feel a pain in his head similar to earlier on, causing him to squint his eyes slightly, but he doesn't let it known to the others.

Shepard quickly looks the quarian up and down checking for any injuries "Were you hurt at all in the fight?"

"I know how to look after myself." she says, sounding like a defiant teenager. "Not that I don't appreciate the help though." she admits, "My name is Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. You said that you are with the Alliance?"

"That's right. I'm Commander Shepard of the SSV Normandy. I'm investigating the Spectre, Saren Arterius, looking for evidence that'll prove that he's a traitor to the Council." he explains.

"Then let this be my chance to repay you for saving my life. But not here. We need to go somewhere safe." says the quarian, clearly not wanting to take any more risks.

"We should head to the Ambassador's office. It's safe there. Plus he'll most definitely want to see this himself anyway." suggests Ashley.

"The Chief is right. Lets move out." says Shepard, taking the lead as usual, heading quickly out of the Lower wards.

The team were now walking through the Presidium. Shepard was determined to get the evidence that the quarian had to Udina as soon as possible so he can present it to the Council. Saren represented everything he hated in the galaxy and he wanted to take him down personally.

Campbell was lagging behind at the back of the group. His head was pounding like crazy and he was feeling disorientated like before in the med-clinic. It was taking all his effort just to keep his concentration on the task at hand. 'What the fuck is wrong with me? Its like my head is gonna explode, getting worse each time I use my TK. Damn it, why is this happening now?' he asks himself, taking a deep breath. 'C'mon Scott, just keep it together till we get back to the Normandy, then you can rest.' he reassures himself, but then his nose starts to bleed again. He quickly wipes the blood away whist walking on.

Ashley not wanting to walk side by side with the 'aliens', looks around noticing that Campbell is falling behind. She sees him wiping blood away from his nose again and walks back to him. "What's really wrong, Campbell? And don't feed me any more bullshit by saying that you're 'fine'."

Campbell realises that he cant hide this from Ashley any longer, but carries on walking not wanting bring his situation to the attention of anyone else. Ashley walks along side him. "Truth is Chief, I really don't know for sure. I think its something to do with me using my TK powers. I've been absolutely fine up until we went to Chora's Den and dealt with those assassins. Since then, I've been feeling a little 'woozy' and my head is pounding something crazy. Then there's the nose bleeds. I managed to shake it off before, but after each time we've ran into trouble it's gotten worse."

Ashley gets in Campbell's way, stopping him by placing a hand on his chest, looking at him eye to eye. He looks down at her hand, feeling her touch from beneath his armor before looking back up to her gaze. She quickly takes her hand back, but kept her eyes locked on his."You have to tell Shepard, Campbell." her tone soft, "We'll head back to the Normandy's med-bay and Dr..."

"No way, Chief." Campbell cuts Ashley off. "And Shepard can't know about this either."

Ashleys eyes widen as if to object. "He's our Commanding officer, you ha...", but he cuts her off again.

"At least wait until we've took the quarian's evidence to the Council, proving that turian dick Saren, a traitor and hopefully find out some more info on what my brother is doing with him. Then once we know where we stand with the Council in finding them, I promise I'll get Dr Chakwas to check me out back on the Normandy."

Ashley just stares Campbell for a moment thinking about what he just asked her to do for him. He looked determined not to back down on this.

"What would you do if it was _your_ brother or sister mixed up in the middle of this, Ashley?" he asks her, using her first name.

That last question hits home with Ashley this time. She thinks about if it was one of her sisters involved in all this mess and fighting on the opposite side. She then tries to imagine what it must be like to be in Campbell's position. She also noticed that he just called by her first name which didn't seem to bother her though surprisingly. "Damn it, Campbell. Are you always this difficult?" she asks in a friendly tone, but with an annoyed look on her face with her hand on her hip.

Campbell just raises an eyebrow mockingly, "You always this persistent, Chief?" switching back to calling her by her rank.

"C'mon. Lets catch up with the others before they start to ask what's wrong, but if you pass out, leaving me to explain everything to Shepard, I swear to god I will kick your ass so bad when you wake up." she threatens with a half smile whilst turning to walk onwards again to catch up with the others. Campbell follows suit right behind her. 'I hope you know what you're doing, Ash.' she thinks to herself.

"Duly noted Chief...And thanks." he adds.

Campbell and Ashley, catch up with Shepard and the others just as they get to the door to Ambassador Udina's office. Garrus had left to go gather his things in preparation for joining the Normandy crew and was to meet them onboard later.  
With a chime from the door opening, they all walk in seeing Udina and Anderson at the far end of the room next to Udina's desk.. Anderson looks up, gesturing for them to come over, while Udina just keeps his back to them with his arms crossed.

"Quite the shit storm you've caused, Shepard. You're not making my life very easy. Firefights in the wards? An all-out assault on Chora's Den? Not to mention assaulting a C-sec officer."

Alenko and Campbell share a brief look, trying not to smile. Udina turns around facing the four marines and one quarian. "Do you know how many..." Udina stops talking when he catches the sight of the quarian. "Who's this? A quarian? Just what exactly are you up to, Shepard?"

Shepard has a smug look on his face. He knew that the evidence would please Udina, but all he wanted to do was punch the guy in the face."Making your day, Ambassador. She has information linking Saren to the geth."

Udina's facial expression shifts in surprise. He keeps his eyes locked on the quarian, not sure what to make of her "Really? Maybe you better start at the beginning, Miss...?"

"My name is Tali. Tali'Zorah nar Rayya." she replies taking a small step forward.

"We don't see many quarians here. Why did you leave the flotilla?" Udina wants all the information he can get from this quarian, about her and the evidence she claims to have.

"I was on my Pilgrimage, my rite of passage into adulthood." explains Tali. A violet light on her mask flickering as she speaks.

This information sparks an interest from Shepard. "I only know very little about your people, Tali. What does your Pilgrimage involve?"

Tali is surprised that a human is actually showing an interest in her people's culture. She hasn't had the best of experiences with humans so far, though this small group did save her life. "It is a tradition among my people. When we reach maturity, we leave the ships of our parents and our people behind. Alone, we search the stars, only returning to the flotilla once we have discovered something of value. In this way, we prove ourselves worthy of adulthood."

"What kind of things do you look for?"

"It could be resources like food or fuel. Or some kind of useful technology. Or even knowledge that can make life easier on the flotilla. Through our pilgrimage we prove that we will contribute to the community, rather than be a burden on our limited resources."

Campbell leans against one of the pillars in the room, whilst Shepard and the others talk with Tali. He felt worse now finding it hard to think straight. Sweat was running down his face. Alenko notices, but Campbell puts up a hand to him signalling that he was okay before Alenko could speak up, not wanting to interrupt the conversation going on.

Ashley was keeping an eye on him. She thought he was looking worse than before. 'God, he looks bad. I knew I should've just dragged his ass back to the Normandy's med-bay when I had the chance. I hope he's gonna be okay.'

Shpard asks Tali, "And what did you find, if you don't mind me asking."

"During my travels I began hearing reports of geth. Since they drove my people into exile, the geth have never ventured beyond the veil. I was curious. So I tracked a patrol of geth to an uncharted world. I waited for one to become separated from its unit. Then I disabled it and removed its memory core." she explained.

"I thought the geth fried their memory cores when they died. Some sort of defence mechanism." asked Anderson curiously.

"I heard the same thing. How did you remove the memory core intact." asks Shepard.

"My people created the geth. If you're quick, careful and lucky small caches of data can sometimes be saved." she sounded almost as if she was trying to impress them. "Most of the core was wiped clean. But I salvaged something from its audio banks." Tali opens up her omni-tool and pulls up the recording she had recovered. She plays it for everyone to listen.

"_Eden Prime was a major victory! The beacon has brought us one more step closer to finding the Conduit."_

Anderson wide-eyed, points to Tali's omni-tool "That's Saren's voice. This proves he was involved in the attack!"

The distinct sound of Saren's voice plus the mention of his name grabs Campbell's full attention, snapping him out of his daze. He stands up straight, pushing the pain in his head away and listens closely.

"He said that Eden Prime brought him one more step closer to finding the Conduit. Any idea what that means?" Shepard asks Anderson.

"The Conduit must have something to do with the beacon. Maybe it's some kind of Prothean technology...like a weapon."

Tali interrupts "Wait...There's more. Saren wasn't working alone." She presses a button on her omni-tool once again.

"_Eden Prime was a major victory! The beacon has brought us one more step closer to finding the Conduit."_

Another voice speaks next, sounding female. _"And one step closer to the return of the Reapers."_

Then a third voice speaks up. _"Marking the rise of Abraxas, whole once again."_

Campbell's eyes widen with the sound of his brothers voice. 'Abraxas is trying to become corporeal, that son of a bitch!. But how? And what's has it got to do with these Reapers, the female voice mentioned? The Reapers sound familiar somehow and I can't figure out why... Damn, I still need a lot more answers, but it's a start I guess. At least I have an idea of what Ross is planing.' he thought.

"I don't recognise those other voices. The ones talking about Reapers and a Abraxas, what ever they are." says Udina.

Everyone apart from Tali and Udina know of Abraxas, from what Campbell's told them, but they're keeping it from Udina. He'll only ask too many questions if he found out the truth about Campbell's origins. Anderson had decided back on the Normandy, that he would leave it up to Campbell if he wanted to share that information with anyone else.

"Reapers?...I feel like I've hard that name before..." says Shepard, trying to remember.

"Me too, Commander. But I can't figure out why." adds Campbell, earning a few glances from the others in the room.

"According the the geth memory core, the Reapers were a hyper-advanced machine race that existed 50,000 years ago. The Reapers hunted the Protheans to to total extinction, and then they vanished. At least that's what the geth believe." Tali further explains.

Udina remains sceptical "Sounds a little far-fetched to me."

Shepard suddenly comes to a realisation "The vision on Eden Prime-I understand it now. I saw the Protheans being wiped out by the Reapers."

Campbell comes to the same conclusion whilst listening to Shepard's statement "The Commander's right. I saw the same thing in the vision I had, amongst other things that actually did make any sense."  
Suddenly he realised something else. 'Abraxas was in the vision I had. And if it was from 50,000 years ago showing the Reapers killing the Protheans, then that means Abraxas was there when all that happened. Just how fucking old is he? And what is his connection to the Reapers? They could be the army he's looking for, but then what about Saren and the geth? Fuck! I wish Bishop was here to explain all this.' he thought to himself, getting frustrated. The throbbing in his head not helping either.

Tali continues "The geth revere the Reapers as gods, the pinnacle of non-organic life. And they believe that Saren and someone called Maverick know how to bring the Reapers back."

"Hmm...Maverick? Isn't that the person that Saren forwarded their regards to you whilst in the Council hearing earlier today, Corporal?" asks Udina.

"Yes, Ambassador. We're...acquainted with one another." answers Campbell.

"Well any information you have on this Maverick will be invaluable I'm sure." he crosses his arms, "The Council is just going to love all this."

"We can't take any risks now. The Reapers are a threat to every species in Citadel space. We have to tell them now." Shepard says sternly.

"No matter what they think about the rest of this, those audio files prove Saren's a traitor." Anderson points out.

Udina uncrosses his arms and shifts his weight slightly "The Captains right, but unfortunately I've been informed that the Council are unavailable until the early morning tomorrow, we'll meet then first thing. I suggest you take your team back to the Normandy, Commander. Get cleaned up and some rest. You need to be ready to present your evidence to the Council."

"What about her? The quarian?" asked Ashley, with a hand gesture.

Tali turned to face Ashley, her facial expression hidden from her mask. "My name.. is Tali!" she says in a annoyed tone. Clearly not liking being referred to as 'the quarian'. She then turns to Shepard. "You saw me in the alley, Commander. You know I can look after myself and what I can do. Let me come with you."

"I thought you was on your Pilgrimage?" he asks

"The Pilgrimage proves we are willing to give of ourselves for the greater good. What does it say about me if I turn my back on this? Saren and this Maverick are a danger to the entire galaxy. My pilgrimage can wait."

Shepard has reservations about taking on someone so young, but he knows he could really use someone with her skills. "All right, Tali. I'll take all the help I can get."

"Thanks, Commander. You won't regret this." she says gratefully.

"Anderson and I will remain here. I want to go over a few details in preparation for tomorrow." says Udina.

"I'll catch up with you back on the Normandy later, Shepard." informs Anderson. "Good job. All of you."

"Thank you, Captain." says Shepard, on behalf of the team. He leads the way out of Udina's office with his team and into the hallway, waiting for the door to close behind them.

"Okay, Campbell, was there anything we didn't cover in there that you can tell us?" asks Shepard.

Campbell feels another rush of dizziness "Er...not much, Commander. Just that when I had my vision back on Eden Prime, I recognised something in it that you didn't due to the fact you've never seen him before. I saw Abraxas there...In my vision. Which means he was in this universe 50,000 years ago when the Protheans got wiped out by the Reapers...And I also think he has a connection to these Reapers somehow, I'm not sure y..."

Campbell's nose suddenly begins bleeding badly out of both nostrils and he has to hold himself up against the wall just to keep his balance. Also the pulsating in his head increases again, causing him to wince in pain. Eventually after less that a minute of fighting, it becomes too hard to stay awake and he passes out on right there, sliding down the wall.

"What the hell...Campbell!" says Shepard, clearly concerned, but getting no reply from the Corporal.

"We should get him to the Normandy med-bay, sir. He was going to go there anyway." suggests Ashley, whilst kneeling to Campbell's side.

Alenko opens up his omni-tool and starts scanning Campbell, whilst Tali just stays quiet and out of the way.

"You knew about this, Williams?" asks Shepard, clearly not happy.

"Yes, sir. I'm sorry, I should've informed you straight away, but Campbell begged me not to bring it to anyone's attention until we proved Saren a traitor and got more information on his brother. He was complaining of head pains and his nose was bleeding earlier, but not as bad as this. He thought it was something to do with using his TK powers."

"If you are going to be a member of my team and for me to trust you, then I need you to be straight with me, Chief Williams. At all times. We'll talk more about this later." Shepard was pissed, but for now he just wanted to get Campbell back to the Normandy as soon as possible so Dr Chakwas can treat him.

"Commander, his blood pressure is dangerously high and he's cerebral hemorrhaging as we speak. We need to move him and get him to Dr Chakwas right now. I recommend getting a skycar-taxi there to avoid attention." suggests Alenko.

"Good idea, LT. There are five of us so you and Williams take him there now. I will escort Tali to the Normandy and meet you on board. Move out."

**Authors note**

**There you go people, another chapter done and even left a bit of a cliff hanger. Next chapter will have a flashback detailing how Scott and Ross got their powers and the attack on their 'Earth' back in 2013. Also Appearances from Bishop and Abraxas.**

**Once again I ask if you got any feedback, comment or PM if you like this story, positive or negative, it will be much appritiated cause your (the readers) opinions matter.**

**Thanks for reading**

**Barnett.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Authors note**

**I just wanted to thank all the readers who are taking the time to read this fic. Sorry this chapter took so long to get posted. This is definitely this longest chapter that I've released to date so I hope it makes up for the wait. **

**Disclaimer**** : Bioware own all the rights to Mass Effect and its characters.**

Mass Intervention

Chapter 6

Campbell awoke in the Normandy's med-bay. The last thing he remembers was standing outside of Udina's office feeling like his head was going to explode and his nose bleeding, but now he felt fine. There was no pain, no dizziness or anything now. He sat up rubbing his eyes, alerting Dr Chakwas that he was awake. He was glad he was still wearing his black under-armor bodysuit on, instead of being in just his underwear like the last time he woke up in the med-bay.

She got up from her desk where she had been examining some results from the tests she had ran on Campbell. "Nice to see you awake, Mr Campbell. I do hope that you're not going to make it a habit of needing treatment here at the med-bay. It is the second time you've been brought in unconscious in the last 48 hours. How are you feeling?"

Campbell can't help but feel like he's just been told off like a child for misbehaving and hurting himself, but he could tell it was just because Dr Chakwas cared deeply for her patients. "I'll try to stay out of trouble, Doc, I promise. As for how I'm feeling...I feel quite good actually. Don't know what you did, but thanks. Earlier I thought that my head was bursting at the seams. How long have I been out for this time?"

"Only a couple of hours. But we do need to talk about what happened to you. When Lieutenant Alenko and Chief Williams brought you in, you were minutes away from having a major stroke. You were very lucky." Dr Chakwas opened up her omni-tool and ran a scan to double check that Campbell's vitals were now normal.

"Yeah, I thought I could handle it until when we got back onboard, but I guess I pushed my luck a little too far this time. So, what happened to me, Doc? Because what ever did happen to me ain't never happened before. Did it have something to do with me using my TK because I always felt worse each time I used it."

Dr Chakwas closed her omni-tool, satisfied with her findings. "That's correct. Chief Williams had informed me of the conversation you had with her and that of your physical state before you collapsed on the Citadel. All your symptoms pointed towards major cerebral hemorrhaging and once my scans confirmed it, I managed to stabilise your condition with a series of corticosteroids to reduce the swelling on your brain. Your healing abilities managed to take care of the rest due to your enhanced physiology."

Campbell still looked confused "But I've had my TK powers for almost 6 months now and I've been using them frequently since then. Nothing like this has happened before. It can't be a coincidence that all of a sudden I come into this universe and my own powers almost end up killing me."

"Your right again, Mr Campbell, it's not a coincidence." Dr Chakwas walks over to her desk and picks up a datapad, walking back and handing it over to Campbell, leaning on the bunk opposite him.

"Once I stabilised your condition, I ran CT and MRI scans on your brain and found some alarming results. I established that it is the information from the Prothean beacon that's causing your brain to hemorrhage. Even though you have 30 percent higher brain functionality than other human beings, due to your physiological enhancements, the primary function of that is to provide you with your Telekinetic abilities, as well as support your other physical and biological attributes.  
With the introduction of the foreign Prothean data into your mind, your brain is now automatically trying to decipher and process the information constantly, as well as maintain its primary functions. You said yourself that the vision you had didn't make much sense and was a mixture of jumbled images. And now it seems that each time you use your 'TK' to an excessive amount, your brain's electrical synapses are overloading, causing it to swell and eventually hemorrhage, getting worse each time you do so."

Campbell takes in the information that Dr Chakwas is giving him and looks at the results on the datapad. "So what are you telling me, Doc? That if I keep using my TK, it will actually kill me? Because the thing is, it's kind of second nature for me to use it in battle. Especially if I find myself in a 'life or death' situation."

"Yes, I'm afraid it can kill you." Dr Chakwas pauses for a moment. "But if you do so happen to be in a situation like that, I think I may be able to provide you with a temporary solution."

"I'll take whatever you can offer, Doc." Campbell knows he can't afford to be at a disadvantage in battle right now. He's only just got a lead on what his brothers plans are and if he actually came face to face with him in his current condition, that disadvantage would most likely get him killed.

Dr Chakwas walks over to a cabinet and takes out a medi-kit, bringing it back over and places it on Campbell's bunk. She takes out some insulin pens that diabetics use to balance their sugar levels. "I should be able to retrofit these insulin pens so that you can use them to inject the same corticosteroids that I used to treat you when you were brought in. That way if you find yourself in a situation where you need to use your TK abilities, you can do so. All you would have to do if you start to feel the same discomfort that you felt previously, is just give yourself a jab with one of these pens the to the neck."

Campbell felt a wave of relief "You are an angel, Doc. I'll be able to fit several of these into a compartment on my armor no problem."

"Don't celebrate just yet, Mr Campbell. I did say it is a 'temporary' solution. If you keep using the medication frequently, your enhanced immune system will eventually build a resistance to the drug, rendering it ineffective. It's the best I can do for now until we can find a more permanent solution." she concludes.

Campbell gives an understanding nod and slides off of the bunk to his feet to put his boots on. "Received loud and clear. I'll keep the use of my TK down to a bare minimum, I promise. When will the injections be ready?"

"It won't be for a few hours at least. Drop by in the morning before you head back to the Citadel and they'll be ready and waiting for you."

"Thanks, Doc. I don't know what I'd do without you." he says gratefully.

"You're welcome, Mr Campbell." she replies smiling.

The door to the med-bay opens and Shepard walks in seeing that Campbell is up and around. Campbell slides off the bunk to his feet and Dr Chakwas heads into the med-lab to give them some privacy to talk.

"Relax Campbell, I'm just here to check in on you and talk. Dr Chakwas has been keeping me updated on your condition since you got brought in." says Shepard, crossing his arms.

"Yeah I'm good, Commander, thanks. Sorry to just flake out on you like that earlier. I should have let you know that I was having problems before it got that bad, but we'd only just got the evidence on Saren and I wanted to see if we could find out anything else on what he was planning with my brother. I knew if I'd have said anything, you would have sent me back here straight away. I thought I had everything under control." Campbell explains.

"I know. Chief Williams filled me in on the details." Shepard takes a deep breath, "Look, Campbell. I get why you're so committed to finding your brother, I really do. If I had a brother mixed up in all this and working with Saren, I'm sure I'd feel the same. But you need to realise that you're part of a team now. My team. If your not 100 percent combat ready, then I need to know about it because you put your life and all of your team members lives in danger otherwise. If we had gotten into another firefight, who knows what might have happened. You're a Lieutenant your own military back home, you should've known better."

Campbell bows his head in shame. He realises that he'd been so determined in his mission to find Ross, he let it cloud his better judgement. "You're right, Commander, on all counts. It's just...It's just been a long time since I've had to think about anyone or anything else other than stopping my brother and Abraxas. I'm not trying to make any excuses, it's just that if only you'd seen what I've seen and experienced what was happening back on my Earth first hand. My family, my friends and millions more are all dead because of what that monster did and he used my own brother to do it. Now they're here working with Saren and the geth to bring back those Reapers they mentioned. I can't...We can't let them succeed in what they have planned."

"We won't. I don't know what lies ahead, but it seems that your mission is now our mission and vice-versa so we're in this together. With that being said, I wanted to talk to you about what you was explaining to me back before you collapsed on the Citadel. You were saying that you saw this Abraxas guy in your part of the vision back on on Eden Prime."

"That's right, Commander. I saw him there in the mixture of everything that I was seeing. It's like he was there, but not there physically. Like his presence was overlooking the Reapers somehow. Which could make sense I guess, seeming that he is incorporeal on our physical plane."

"So if he was here in this galaxy 50,000 years ago, why did he leave? Is he the Reapers leader?" asks Shepard.

"I don't know for sure, Commander, but I doubt he is their leader because why would he then need someone like my brother to act on his behalf when he would already have the Reapers at his command. Plus where were they when he came to my world. It just don't add up, but I do have a theory though, sir."

"I'm listening."

"I think Abraxas needs the Reapers somehow."

"What makes you say that?"

"Back when we heard the recording that the quarian obtained, my brother stated that once the Reapers returned, it would mark the _rise_ of Abraxas, _whole_ _once_ _again. _That means he must have already been corporeal once before, but I think it was before the Protheans got wiped out. Something must have happened to him to make him incorporeal in the first place. Maybe he tried using the Reapers 50,000 years ago somehow to make him corporeal again, but something might have went wrong causing him to leave. Maybe it was the Protheans or maybe it was Bishop. I don't know."

Shepard thinks for a moment "But if he did somehow become corporeal, then wouldn't he be making himself vulnerable to being attacked and even killed on our physical plane?"

"You don't get it, Commander. This...thing is really powerful. As in 'DC comics Darkseid' powerful. And we now know he's at least 50,000 years old too. I've only seen what he can do whilst he's incorporeal, which is more than enough to be a massive threat to this galaxy on its own, trust me. Who knows what he's capable of once he's corporeal again."

"I remember you mentioning this 'Bishop' once before when the Captain and I first asked for your help against Saren, but you were pretty vague about him. Who exactly is he?"

"I'll tell you what, Commander. This is gonna take some time to explain and I'm absolutely bloody starving. Let me get changed into my uniform and I'll meet you in the mess for something to eat." Campbell looks through the med-bay window into the mess hall. "Its not that busy in there so we can talk freely."

Shepard stands up straight "Okay, Campbell. I have to admit, I'm quite hungry myself. I'll meet you in there in lets say...15 minutes?"

Campbell gives a nod "Sounds good to me, Commander."

"Just one more thing, Campbell. Call me Shepard okay?"

"No worries...Shepard" Smiles Campbell.

Shepard turns and walks out of the med-bay and into the mess hall, heading towards the kitchen area. Campbell then heads to his locker to get changed.

_**20 mins later**_

Campbell walks back into the mess hall after changing into his Alliance fatigues and spots Shepard tucking into something that looks barely edible on his plate. There were a few other crew members in there, but they were sitting at another table at the far end of the mess hall behind a wall divide. Nearby, Lieutenant Alenko was still working on the same computer consoles he had been for days, determined to get them operational again. He heads to the kitchen cabinet and grabs hold of a military ration pack, examining it closely. "Hey, Shepard. What the fuck is this supposed to be?" he asks.

Shepard lets out a slight chuckle "Its the Alliance Navy's finest microwavable beef ravioli. Trust me, its tastes as bad as it looks, but its full of the necessary proteins and carbs the body needs to survive in space so get stuck in."

Campbell reluctantly empties the contents onto a plate and sticks it in the microwave. "So, Shepard. I swear I overheard a couple of crew members saying that we now have a krogan on board?"

"That we do. On the way back to the Normandy, I ran into that huge krogan bounty hunter, Wrex, from Chora's Den. The one who was after Fist. He said he owed me for taking care of Fist for him and even gave me half of the bounty. He then went on to say he knew about us going after Saren and how it would be a hell of a fight, asking to be a part of bringing him down. I agreed thinking we could use the muscle."

Campbell shrugs "Fair enough. He did seem pretty badass. What about Garrus and the quarian, Tali?" His food beeps and he takes out his plate, walking over to where Shepard is sitting and takes a seat.

"I gave them the same offer and they both also joined the crew. The way I see it, if we're gonna take on Saren, your brother and the geth, then we're going to need all the help we can get."

Campbell takes a mouthful of his ravioli and automatically wishes he didn't "Urgh, military food just doesn't ever get any better, does it." he comments, and the men continue eating.

_**Meanwhile in the Cockpit of the Normandy...**_

Joker sits in his favourite spot of the ship...The pilots chair. He loved the Normandy. Her systems, her style, her shape, her advanced stealth drive, the way she responds to his every command, even the fact she was co-designed between the Alliance and the Turians all the way down to her schematics, making her a unique force to be reckoned with.

Due to his Vroliks Syndrome, getting in and out of his pilot seat can be quite the headache, so he regularly just prefers to just sit there running diagnostics, scenarios, testing systems, basically making sure the Normandy is in the best shape possible. He'd say it all just adds to the fact of being one of the best damn pilots in the entire Alliance he got hungry though, he'd often ask a crew member to nip down and grab him a sandwich or a drink and sneak it up for him to save him the hassle. Its just so happened to be Chief William's turn today. Joker had sent her a message on his omni-tool to nip up to the cockpit as he wanted to ask her a favour.

Ashley entered the CIC and started walking towards the cockpit. She knew that Joker was going to ask her to bring up a snack to him or maybe a coffee. She didn't mind that much though. She'd become friends with Joker quite easily since she came aboard. Often exchanging banter and talking about some of the Alliance's finest ships. She hadn't had the chance to talk to many of the other crew members other than LT Alenko, Shepard and Campbell, so she valued the fact that she had Joker to come and have a chat with when she needed a break from her post down at the armory from time to time.

"Hey, Joker. I got your message. Let me guess...You're too busy piloting the ship and would like me to grab you something?" She asks with a smile.

Joker instantly returns a smile back "You know how it is here, Chief. My Bab...I mean the Normandy needs me at the helm right now as I'm...er...running at security sweep." He pulls up the holoscreen, flicking though the different security cameras fitted through the ship." You see? This could take a while, so if you could just do me this one favo..."

Ashley spots something that sparks an interest "Wait, Joker stop!"

Joker looks confused "What? You mean the cameras."

"Yeah. Go back to camera number 2 in the mess." she asks.

"Sure, no problem." Joker flicks the channels back to 'Mess Hall camera 2'. Its positioned just slightly to the left of where Shepard and Campbell are sitting, eating their meals. "Looks like Campbell's made a full recovery." he comments.

"Thank god for that. He seemed in a pretty bad way when Kaiden and I brought him back onboard earlier." And Shepard reprimanded her for not letting him know what was going on with him also. Campbell owed her big time for asking her to do that, but then again, she could have said no. "I wonder what he's talking to the Commander about?"

Joker shrugs "Beats me...But."

Ashley turns to look at Joker curiously "But what, Joker?"

"But...for a price, lets just say at cup of coffee and a sandwich. I could switch on the audio to the camera." Jokers grins, looking at the holoscreen.

"Joker, that would be so wrong. Not to mention the regs that we'd be breaking."

"Just saying, Chief. If they were talking about me, I'd like to sneak a peek at what they're saying."

Ashley knew that Joker was trying bait her into listening in just so that she'd to fetch him a damn sandwich.

'Typical. It wouldn't surprise me if he's the source of all the scuttlebutt flying around the ship too.' she thinks to herself.

But what if they were talking about her? What if they we talking about her family history?. She wrestles with the thought for a minute before giving in to her paranoia.

"Okay Joker, But only for a minute to see if they're talking about me at all. If its something that we shouldn't be hearing, then we switch it off. Okay?"

"Okay, Chief. Whatever you say." Joker checks whether Presley is in the CIC. He isn't and he closes the cockpit door. He then flicks on the audio to the camera in the Mess hall.

_**Back in the Mess Hall...**_

"So, Shepard I know we were talking about me earlier, and I do have more to tell you, but tell me a bit about yourself first. What made you become a military man? I remember you saying back on the Citadel, that both your parents were in the military and you grew up on Alliance ships and stations. I also read on your file that you got awarded the 'Star of Terra' for your efforts in the Skyllian Blitz. I'm assuming that's one of the more prestigious awards."

Shepard finishes off the last of his dinner, placing his knife and fork on the plate. He wipes his mouth with a paper napkin and leans back slightly. "My childhood is nothing exciting. Both my Mom and Dad were in the Alliance Navy and posted on different ships a lot of the time. My Dad eventually became a Captain of his own ship, so I spent a lot of my childhood living with my Mom wherever she was posted at instead of going back and forth all the time. We did have lots of nice family vacations though whilst they were both on shore leave together."

Shepard smiles, reminiscing about old childhood memories, but then pauses a moment, looking away. "But then my Dad passed away when I was 12 due to a heart attack. He was only 43. That's when I knew I wanted to become an Alliance officer and do the memory of my Dad proud. I went to a military boarding school when I was 14, once my Mom became the XO of the Alliance carrier SSV Einstein. I stayed really close with her throughout and then as soon as I turned 18, I enlisted."

Campbell stops eating for a minute trying to imagine what Shepard is telling him about his upbringing "Shepard, you literally grew up in space. That's like... Like something I've only heard about on sci-fi tv shows back home."

Shepard crosses his arms and grins "I keep forgetting that you're from another time period. I can't imagine what it must have been like for you growing up back then. I've seen lots of vids about it and learned a bit from when I was in history class, but that's all. It looked...simpler back in those days. Not sure if I could've handled it myself."

Campbell takes another gulp of water, washing down the horrible taste from his meal. "Says the bloke who spent his childhood growing up in space. Believe it or not, growing up back then was awesome and I wouldn't have changed a thing about it. My Mum and Dad were both loving, kind, hard working people, working in your average day to day jobs doing the best they could to provide for their 2 sons. We lived in a nice house in the suburbs of Leicester in England. We were a very close family, always going on holidays and doing things together. One of the things that I'll always remember about my parents is that they always reminded us of the importance of family and how we should always be there for each other, no matter what.

There is only a 13 month age gap between my brother and I so we pretty much did everything together growing up. Went to the same schools, hung out with the same group of friends, partied together, basically experienced all the things young lads do in that time period, which I bet can't be that much different to kids nowadays in a sense really. But we did have one hell of a sibling rivalry though that got us into more trouble than my parents ever found out about."

It was Campbell's turn to reminisce now, thinking back to a time when life was...normal.

"What made you and your brother join the military?"

Campbell snaps back to the present. "To cut a long story short, back in the year 2001, there was a horrible terrorist attack on the United states of America and a lot of innocent people were killed. Thousands actually. An act of pure evil. I remember my whole family watching it live on the news from from the moment it was announced. It was devastating to watch knowing that it was happening live whilst I was in the comfort of my home miles away. I wanted to help.

It took a long time for America to recover and rebuild, but they did and the people were an even more united nation than ever before, which was an amazing thing to witness happen. But the world was forever changed by that horrible day. The terrorists tried to justify their actions with religion and misguided beliefs, but all I saw was a terrible threat to humanity that needed to be removed permanently.

It made me realise that there was so much fucked up shit going on in the world. I wanted to stand up for the ones who had suffered at he hands of tyrants and dictators. To fight back on their behalf and to give hope to the people who had none left. My brother felt the same, but we both wanted to do it in our own ways. Ross joined the army. He wasn't one for long training time periods and wanted to get into the thick of it as fast as possible. Typical grunt."

Campbell smiles to himself, thinking about all the teasing they gave to each other about their respective choices in the military.

"Where I, on the other hand, decided to join the Royal marines. I wanted to be the best soldier on the field, learn every tactic, train harder than anyone, dedicate body and soul so that when I go out to fight, I know that I'm giving it 110 percent, making my family as proud as possible."

"Well if you made it all the way to 2nd Lieutenant, I'm sure they were very proud."

"Yeah they always told us they were. Ross had made it to Staff Sergeant in the army. Though ranks were never that important to him I think. He just plain loved it." he says with a smile, remembering how happy Ross was during his career until...He looks to change the subject "Tell me about that 'N7' emblem that you wear on your armor?"

Shepard shifts on his chair, leaning back so he can put his feet up on the chair next to him. "That symbol is for the marines who have completed N7 training. In 2176, I was on shore leave on Elysium when the first wave of the Skyllian Blitz hit. A coalition of Batarians. Pirates, slavers, warlords and criminals all attacked at once. It was brutal. They went on a killing spree, murdering men, women...even children. They were determined to wipe the colony out. I managed to round up as many able men and women as I could, some were other Alliance soldiers on leave themselves, but most of them were just civilians. We fought back as best as we could, lasting a good 12 hours at least. But there was a breach in our defences so I rushed down there only to find most of the people guarding the post either dead or wounded. By some miracle or a hell of a lot of luck, I managed to single-handedly hold off the batarians for what seemed like an eternity and even close off the breach altogether. Eventually reinforcements arrived and the batarians fled, but the Alliance brass hailed me a hero for what I did."

Shepard shakes his head slightly looking away "The real heroes were the men and women who died fighting that day. It was shortly after that when I was selected for 'Interplanetary Combat Training' or 'N-school' it was sometimes called. The 'N' stood for Special forces training, similar to the SAS or Navy seals or your time. The number next to the 'N' stood for the level of training you had, 'N7' being the highest level of achievement, allowing you to wear the symbol on your armor in combat."

Campbell raises his eyebrows, clearly impressed "Wow, Shepard, check you out. A regular 'Chuck Norris' of the future."

Shepard looks confused "Chuck Norris?"

Campbell laughs a little "Never mind, Shepard, I was giving you a compliment."

"Thanks, I think. Even with all our differences, Campbell, I think we actually have a lot in common. I'm glad to have you as part of the crew."

"Thanks, Shepard." he replies.

_**Back at the Normady cockpit...**_

Joker and Ashley were glued to the holoscreen they were watching. Most of what Shepard was saying about himself was already in the official Alliance records regarding his military career. He was described as a hero and a model Alliance officer, but hearing a bit about his childhood allowed both Joker and Ashley to look at him in a different light and get to see the man behind the rank. Campbell was a different story though. Ashley just assumed he was this macho 'Super Soldier' from the past on a mission across universes to stop some 'big bad', but after listening to him talk about his life before all that started made her re-think what she thought of him. His family, childhood and life all just seemed so...So normal. She found herself wanting to know more about him. Then all of a sudden she realised that Joker didn't know Campbell wasn't from their time period, let alone another universe.

"I knew there was something different about that guy!" he remarks.

"Joker, kill the feed. We shouldn't be watching this, It's classified." Ashley says sternly.

"You mean you knew about Campbell all along?" he asks her.

"Yeah, but Captain Anderson ordered us to keep his background quiet from the rest of the crew. You can't say anything about what you've seen or we are both in serious trouble." she explains. 'Damn it, Ash. When will you learn!' she scolds herself.

"Well the way I see it, I've already broke so many regs just by seeing this much. What's a few more minutes going to do. Feel free to leave, Chief, I don't want you to get into trouble." grins Joker.

Ashley is just about to turn and walk away, but something makes her stay "God, I must be crazy. Just a few more minutes, Joker. I mean it this time."

"Scouts honor, I swear."

_**Back in the Mess Hall...**_

"Now you was going to tell me about your friend, Bishop." asks Shepard.

Campbell takes a sip from his glass of water "Yeah, I did didn't I. Well the thing about Bishop is." he pauses for a moment "He's is from the same race of beings that Abraxas is from, but he's one of the good guys and also incorporeal. Where Abraxas chose my brother and made him into his herald by giving him his powers to act out his will, Bishop chose me and gave me my powers to take him down."

"So where is Bishop now?"

"Before I got here, he said that bringing us here would drain him of most of his powers leaving him incredibly weak. He said it may take months for him to recover, meaning he wont be around for a while. He did say that he'd be watching over me and will try to communicate which ever way he can. I'm hoping it was the same deal for Abraxas. He would have made his presence know to me by now if it was otherwise. I do wish Bishop was here though. He'd have so many of the answers we need that could help us."

"I see. What made Abraxas and Bishop choose you and your brother in the first place?"

"My brother was chosen by Abraxas weeks before I was by Bishop. I think one of the reasons he chose me was mainly because Ross was my brother and that I'd have a better chance of taking him down than anyone else. No one knew him better than I did."

"Why do you think Abraxas chose your brother?"

"From what I know, Abraxas thrives on corrupting people who have darkness in their souls, even if they don't know it themselves. At the time when Ross was chosen, Ross was grieving over the death of his wife who was pregnant with their baby. They were killed by a drunk driver in a car accident. It changed how he looked at the world. He'd given up completely on everything he had believed in before. Replaced it with anger and grief. Abraxas came to him during the funeral...

_**Location : Earth 2013**_

_**Whetstone Cemetery, Leicester, England. **_

_Ross Campbell stands at his wife's grave alone. The funeral finished an hour ago but he wanted to be alone with her for a while. His brother, Scott, had taken care of all the formalities and arrangements for the wake, making sure all the family and friends new where they were going. Ross couldn't do it. He didn't care anymore. His ability to care had died in the car crash that took his wife and unborn child. His eyes were reddened from the tears that seemed to be endless, powered by the pain that burns his soul._

_His superiors in the Army told him to take as much time as he needed to get through this before returning to duty, but he told them he was done. Finished fighting for a people that abuses the lives they have, a people that get to walk away from crimes just because their father is a chief of police, a people that are so selfish, cruel, greedy, corrupt and willing to start wars for pointless causes...A people that robbed him of his family._

_Ross Campbell was grieving, but he was also raging inside. A rage so powerful now that it was consuming him. He wanted revenge, justice, retribution and the one thing he'll never have again...His family back in his arms._

_Unaware to him, something evil lingers nearby. It can sense the torment and rage emanating from Ross's soul. 'Yes... He will do nicely' it thought from a distance. _

_As Ross turned to leave his family's grave, he heard a voice address him._

_"I can give you what you want, Ross Campbell."_

_Ross spins around "What? Who said that?"_

_"One who can give you the means to bring the ones you seek to justice. If that is what you desire?" The voice echoed._

_"What is this? Some kind of sick joke? Show yourself!" he shouts. He swears he can hear the sound of whispering around him._

_"My name is Abraxas, please don't be afraid, I mean you no harm." the voice reassures him_

"_Oh really? Is that why you wont show your face then. And trust me mate, I don't fucking scare easily. Now why don't you come out from where you're hiding."_

"_I am not from your world human. I'm a traveller from a place far beyond your universe. I was nearby visiting your world when I sensed your grief. I would like to help you." the deep voice says. For some reason the voice sounds strangely genuine to Ross, but he can't tell why._

_Ross looks around him trying to find a the source of the voice "Oh, you want to help me? And why would you do that?" he sarcastically replies, only to get no response this time. He waits a few silent moments before turning and walks away. 'Talking to imaginary aliens Ross, if you hadn't lost it already, you defiantly are losing it now mate.' he thought to himself._

_As Ross walks away a thick black smoke appears from out of a shadow behind him, it lunges forward, swirling around his feet. He stops instantly as it begins to rise before of him. Ross instantly backs a few steps away into a defensive position as the smoke accumulates into the form of a large, but human resembling figure. Its face hidden by a hooded cloak apart from two glowing red eyes that radiate some kind of energy from beneath the hood. Ross couldn't help but think he looked a bit like 'Anubis' from one of his favourite sci-fi shows, Stargate SG-1._

_"What the fuck! You wern't lying were you." spits out Ross. Combat instincts now kicking in, he instinctively takes a full right hand swing at the hooded figure, but his punch goes right through the figure as if he was punching the air. He stumbles forward, quickly regaining his posture. The black figure lets out a low and short laugh. _

_"I am Abraxas, human. I do not have a physical form on this world as I reside on a different plane of existence to you. You cannot cause me any harm so it is futile for you to try. "_

_"Okay then, let's just say for now that you are real. What do you want with me?" Ross asks_

_"Like I mentioned before, I want to help you inflict punishment on the ones who took your family away from this world. Giving you the justice you so eagerly crave." It explains. "You do want justice do you not, Ross Campbell? Do you think the men now walking free care what they've done. No they do not. They are carrying on with their pathetic lives whilst yours gets torn apart. Your wife and unborn child stolen by the very people you fight for. Everything that you've done for them all. The service, the battles, the wars, the sacrifice. And this is how you get rewarded?"_

_Ross just looks at Abraxas standing in front of him trying to take in what is happening. He can feel himself wanting to believe the entity before him, but he can't tell if it's right or wrong. He hears the whispers again asking for retribution and justice. He holds the sides of his head feeling it throbbing with pain. He looks up to see the image of his wife before him. Liz Campbell stands just a few feet away holding her hand out to him, tears in her eyes. He can't believe it's her. His heart suddenly lifts, the pain and torment that had gripped him since the car accident suddenly stops. _

_"LIZ!" he shouts. He rushes towards his wife, but grabs nothing as she disappears again. Nothing but the dark form of Abraxas remains. The pain inside Ross's heart returns and the torment begins anew._

"_Kill them. Kill them all!" says the voice of Liz Campbell echoing._

_With his face hidden, Abraxas smiles widely._

_Ross looks up at the dark figure before him, tears now running down his cheeks. Seeing her like that only for her to vanish again felt like a spear in the gut. 'She looked like she was hurting. She wants me to make them pay..' he thought._

_"Tell me what you need me to do, Abraxas. How will you help me?"_

_Abraxas leans in towards Ross extending a black gloved hand towards his chest "All I need you to do is allow me to give you a portion of my power. You will then have the means to seek out and eliminate the ones who have caused you so much pain. But for this work, you must open your mind and your soul to me willingly, only then will you be able to accept the power I have to give you." it explains. _

_Ross closes his eyes. More tears fall down his cheeks. Deep down a part of him is shouting for him to stop, that this is wrong and he must run, but it keeps getting quieter. Replaced with the mental image of his wife, asking for vengeance and getting louder. He looks up having made a choice. "Do it" he says, finally surrendering._

_Abraxas slams his palm into Ross's chest, shocking his body like he has ten thousand volts of electricity flowing through him. His arms fling to his side and his head tilts back wide eyed as the grip on his body tightens. Red crackling energy flows from Abraxas's hand into every inch of Ross's body, enhancing his physiological structure on a cellular level and re-writing parts of his DNA making him stronger, faster and more agile. His senses become more attuned, his body more durable and his mind feels like its been set free. Ross clenches his fists feeling the serge of raw power now coursing through him. Never has he felt so alive._

_All of a sudden the feeling changes. He now feels his very essence being violated and twisted. Forced with something so dark and so evil he can feel himself drowning in it. His mind becomes induced with the ideals of hate, violence, dominance, superiority and the hunger for power._

_Abraxas laughs to himself. "Yes Ross Campbell, you will be one of my greatest Heralds yet. You are man of war. You have tasted the thrill of battle, exterminating life by your own hand. I can sense a part of you enjoyed it, even if you can't. The anger and rage that now resides within your soul screamed out to me. I will amplify that anger and rage a thousand fold. You will destroy, kill and conquer in my name with your new found power that I have bestowed upon you, whilst I shall begin to touch the souls of humanity, corrupting their essence with my own, enraging them. They will become mindless slaves, who will obey my every command. Only the strongest will survive on the new earth I have planned and only they will be allowed to join my army. for which you shall lead. Now go forth and begin your reign of terror. You can start with the ones that stole your family from you. I shall return to you soon."_

_Abraxas lets go of Ross once the transformation is complete. He falls to his knees in front his new master._

_"Yes... my lord." replies Ross, looking up with now glowing red eyes himself. _

_Abraxas turns back into the thick black smoke and slowly fades away._

_Ross Campbell rises to his feet now forever changed. He is no longer the man he once was. He is now powerful, superior, more than human and fuelled by pure evil and rage. He is the new right hand of Abraxas. _

_Scott walks through the gateway of the graveyard looking for his brother after forwarding everyone from the funeral to the wake. He spots his brother nearby his wife's fresh gravestone. He walks up behind him. "Hey Ross, everyone's gone to mum and dads for the wake. Are you ready to go or do you need more time?" _

_"I'm not going to the wake." he replies._

_"Look, I know how hard this mus..." _

_"You don't know shit!" Ross cuts in "Was it your wife and child that died in your arms? No!...You have no fucking idea what I'm feeling. But that's all going to change...oh brother of mine. Soon everyone will know my pain."_

_Scott instantly thinks the worst "Ross, tell me you ain't gonna go after those blokes from the accident. Listen to me, I've made a few calls with a contact in internal affairs, he's ex-military. I served a tour with him years back in Iraq. He said that he's going to look into what happened with the investigation personally. We'll have our justice mate, just give it some time yeah?." Scott now pleading to his brother to listen._

_Ross still stands staring at his wife's grave, his back to his brother. "Good ol big brother. Military man till the end and firm believer in 'the system'. Hate to break it to you bro, but the system don't work anymore. Time for a new one."_

_Scott tries again from a different angle "Ross we made an oath when we joined up in the military. I want to see those fucking shit stains suffer as much as you do, but we're not above the law. Don't throw your life away." Scott goes to put a hand on Ross's shoulder "Liz wouldn't wa..."_

_Scott doesn't even get to finish his sentence as Ross turns and backhands him, sending Scott back several feet in the air. "Don't fucking touch me!" _

_He slams into a large gravestone, feeling a rib or two break on impact and the wind completely knocked out of him. He grips his waist instinctively . 'What the fuck was that!' he thought._

_Ross walks towards his brother slowly, his eyes glowing red as he stares at his brother. "Oh I'm not throwing my life away brother, it's just starting. A new acquaintance has shown me the true face of humanity, It's flaws so to speak. I've been chosen to lead in removing those flaws. Humanity is in need of cleansing."_

_Leaning up the gravestone he slammed into, Scott looks at his brother in shock. "Wha...your eyes...What the fuck happened to you? What are you talking about?" he asks frantically._

_"You'll see soon enough as the time for change has come, big brother. Abraxas is here to bring order to the world through chaos, destruction and war. Only the strong will survive it whilst the weak will be eradicated. Now if you excuse me, I've got some personal 'justice' to deliver. Ross walks by Scott towards the exit of the cemetery. _

_Scott gets to his feet, leaning against a gravestone. "Ross!...Stop! Wait a second, please." _

_Scott's pleas for his brother to stop are ignored as Ross disappears out of sight. Holding his side from the broken ribs, he tries to process what just happened. 'I don't know who that was but that wasn't my brother. He was so strong and his eyes...they weren't normal, weren't...human...And who is Abraxas?.' _

_Scott needs answers, but first he calls his parents to let them know that he and Ross won't be making the wake before heading to the hospital to get his ribs looked at. Then he was going to find his brother for some real answers._

_**2 weeks later**_

_Scott bursts through the door of his parents house located on the outer skirts of the city of Liecester. He walks into the lounge where his parents, Phill and Kate Campbell are sat watching the Midlands News bulletin. He watches it along with them. _

_The scene was chaotic mess. There were cars and buildings on fire, people screaming, fighting and running. You could hear the sounds of sirens and police scanners in the background. The worst part was that this was located just a half hours drive from where his parents lived._

_-"This is Derek Corbin, reporting live for ITV, where you can see the riots are getting out of control here in the city of Leicester. People everywhere are randomly attacking and actually killing each other like mindless animals, showing no mercy. And it seems to be spreading as reports of more attacks keep on coming through to the emergency services. The death toll has already reached the thousands as the authorities seem to be clearly outnumbered. Reinforcements are said to be on the way from Nottingham, Birmingham and Coventry. People are advised to stay indoors until this situation is under control"-_

_"Mum, Dad, It's only getting worse out there. People are killing each other and destroying everything they can. I even seen old Mrs Chamberlain, attacking her neighbour with her walking stick on the way here. I'm starting to think there's nothing random about all this at all. I want you to both pack some things and come stay with me until this blows over, just to be safe."_

_"Okay son, I think you might be right. I'll start getting some things packed to take with us." says Phill Campbell, getting up. _

_Scott's mother turns to look at him "Any news on your brother Scott? It's been 2 weeks now with all this happening, I'm just so worried something's happened to him."_

_"I'm sure he's fine mum. He's one of the best soldiers I know and can more than look after himself... I'll find him, don't worry." Scott had kept the more 'extreme' details of the last time he saw Ross to himself. But what could he have said? 'Ross swatted me ten feet into the air with one hand, had glowing red eyes and talked about killing everyone'. _

_There was also the fact that all the citywide madness began happening from that very day. The thought sent a chill down Scott's spine._

_He sat down next to his mother and put a comforting arm around her after seeing the worry on her face from watching the news. _

_-"No one can explain the reason for the behaviour of the people of Leicester, but it's clear... " The reporter looks to his left "What's that over there? John are you getting this on film?. Who's..."_

_Before the reporter gets to finish speaking, he suddenly lifts into the air and thrown into the side of a parked van nearby, he remains pinned by some unseen force. The news cameraman captures the look of terror on the reporters face, as he takes cover and continues filming. _

_Scott and his mother can't believe their eyes._

_"This can't be real surely." says Scott in denial._

_The camera then moves up to see a car be launched like a toy from a distance towards them, only for it slam with incredible force, straight into the the van that the news reporter was pinned to, crushing him like an insect. The cameraman then turns to his right to see none other than Ross Campbell, levitating several feet above the ground with a menacing look on his face, his arms crossed and his eyes once again glowing red with raw power. He looks almost inhuman. He's also changed his clothes. He's now dressed in what looks to be a black ceremonial armor, with a katana sword holstered to his waist. A far cry from when Scott saw him last._

_"My god Scott...that's your brother...Phill! Get down here quick it's Ross on the news!" shouts Kate. Tears begin to flow down hers face at the sight of her son this way. "This can't be happening...please god do something." she pleads out loud in a half prayer._

_Phill Campbell runs down the stairs into the lounge. He looks at the tv and his face mimics that of his wife and eldest son. "Jesus Christ, what's happened to him?"_

_The camera view on the television shakes wildly as the man holding it has never been more scared. An armed police officer arrives on the scene next, equipped with a semi-automatic rifle. He takes aim and fires directly at Ross._

_Ross simply holds up his left hand openly in defiance, deflecting the bullets with the same unseen force that threw the reporter and launched the car that crushed him. Then with the same open hand aimed at the police officer, closes it into a fist as the body of the officer contorts, twists and breaks, collapsing onto itself in a bloody mess. The screams of terror heard through the television resembles that of one from a horror movie and heard by all watching in their homes. _

_The three family members watch the television in utter disbelief, but remain fixated on the events transpiring before they're eyes and the rest of the country eyes that are watching this. _

_The news cameraman remains focused on the form of Ross Campbell, until inevitably, Ross looks directly at the cameraman. He extends his right hand and a car to his right lifts up into the air at the same time. Then with just a simple swift movement from Ross, the car flies directly into the camera, ending the news report altogether. The fate of the cameraman unknown._

_Scott walks over and switches off the television immediately, not wanting to hear or see any more. His parents are left completely speechless._

_"I'm going after him...talk to him maybe, convince him to stop... I don't know. I can't just leave him like that though." Scott concludes "Something has got to be making him do those things, brainwashed him somehow." He can't help but think of the name Ross mentioned at the funeral...'Abraxas'._

_"He looked possessed, Scott. He was floating in the air for Christs sake." says Kate, turning to her religion to explain what she saw. "I ju... I just want my boy home." his mother pleads, breaking down completely. _

_Scott's father walks over to him and puts his hands on his shoulders. "I can't explain what i just saw, son. I don't care what you have to do or what lengths you have to go to. You either save him or you stop him. No matter what it takes, okay? Promise me?"_

_Scott gives his father a nod of confirmation. "I promise, Dad. You can count on me."_

_Phill pulls his son in for a brief fatherly embrace, before releasing him again. " No father can be more proud of you boys as much as I am of you two...Now go get your brother and bring him home, I'll look after your mother and we'll be ready to go when you get back."_

_"Don't leave the house till I'm back, okay. Phone lines are down and so are the cell phone networks so you won't be able to reach me. If for some reason I'm not back in the next 3hrs, get in your car and get as far away from here as possible." instructs Scott. _

_"We will. We love you son."_

_"I love you both too." replies Scott, walking out the front door and jumping into his Range Rover. He speeds off of the drive and heads for where his brother was last seen on the news report. _

_He turns up the local radio stations and listens to the various reports of attacks, rioting and the sightings of a man with the ability to move things with his mind, slaughtering everyone in his path._

_'My god, Ross, what's happened to you?' he asks no one. _

_As he is driving, what he sees reminds him of some of the war zones he's been in. Fires and smoke, destroyed properties, overturned cars in every direction to look at. People loading their vehicles and leaving town to get away somewhere more safe, away from the hoards of crazed people terrorising the city that also seems to be increasing. _

_'They'll be announcing a military martial law soon surely.' he thinks to himself as he noticed the lack of law enforcement on the streets._

_Scott finally reached the area of where the news reporter was killed on the news after about 45 minutes, but there was no sign of his brother anywhere. The area had been completely deserted. Homes, businesses, stations, everything. It reminded of the movie 'I am legend' starring Will Smith. He starts to scan various radio stations looking for any more live reports._

_-I repeat, large numbers of hostiles are advancing through the areas of Blaby, Countesthorpe, Whetstone and Wigston. You are not safe in your homes. The authorities have announced a full evacuation until further notice. If you can get to a vehicle, do so and leave the area, reporting to the nearest towns local authorities. I repeat, large numbers of...-_

"_Oh shit! I swear to God, they better be alright!" he says aloud, whilst turning his 4x4 around and heading back to his parents house as fast as he can. The time it was taking to get back was utter torment. He wished he had never left them there._

_With only a few minutes left to get there, large amounts of thick black smoke can be seen coming from the estate where his parents live. His heart races. 'Please God, not them.' he prays._

_But his worst fears are confirmed true. No form of military training could have prepared him for what he finds. Almost every house is set a blaze on his parents street, including his parents house. Flames tear through the upstairs windows, breaching the roof tiles. The heat so intense, he can feel its from inside his 4x4. He pulls up near his parents house and jumps out looking for a way in. "MUM! DAD!" he shouts to no response. He goes into marine mode, running around the back of the house and jumps into the garden pond, soaking all his clothes. He then runs to the back door and kicks it in having to duck out of the way of flames that pour out of the doorway from the backdraft. Waiting for just the right moment he runs inside. He feels his skin burning instantly, but he pushes back the pain. "MUM! DAD! Where are you?" he shouts again looking for any sign of his parents. He makes his way through the kitchen into the lounge. That's when he sees them. Their charred bodies wrapped around each other in an emotional embrace. 'Oh god, please no' he thinks as he falls to his knees. Helpless. Lost. Feeling so numb with the shock he doesn't even notice the fire burning his skin. His mind floods with a dozen emothions all at once. Shock, panic, pain, dispair, realisation...grief. He didn't even realise that a fireman had burst through the front door and grabbed a hold of him. He tried to resist, to stay, regardless of the fact that it was too late to save his parents. He was too late. He collapses on the floor as soon as the fireman gets him to a safe distance and lets go to return to fighting the blaze. _

_Scott doesn't know what to do. His world is literally falling apart around him. As if in a trance he gets up and walks away. In complete denial of what he's just saw, he comes to an empty car park of a nearby supermarket and sits down on the curb holding his head in his hands. He felt tired. The burns on his arms and leg already searing with pain. What does he do now? where does he go? Its chaos in every direction. In the space of 2 weeks, he's lost his entire family. Never in his life has he felt so clueless. So useless._

"_I'm sorry for your loss, Mr Campbell." A voice appears from nowhere._

_Scott snaps his head up to find a man dressed in a white suit standing a few feet in front of him. "A bit of friendly advice, mate. I'm not someone you want to be around right now, so I suggest you keep on w...Wait a sec, how do yo know my name?" He stands up, shock turning to anger "If you had anything to..."_

_The man held up a hand in defence "I swear to you, I had nothing to do with your parents death, Scott. But do I know who did."_

_Scott stands ready to attack the stranger at the first sign of trouble "Okay then, who?"_

"_The same being that has turned your brother into the person he is today and the same being who wants to see your world burn." the stranger explains._

_Scott already knows the answer "Abraxas?"_

_The stranger is surprised that Scott knows the name "You have encountered, Abraxas?"_

"_No. A few weeks back at my brothers wife's funeral, I found my brother at her gravestone. He was different though. He was distant, angry, like something had changed in him, and his eyes glowed fucking red. He spoke about humanity being flawed and needing to be cleansed. Also that someone called Abraxas was here to bring order to the world through chaos. Then he swatted me like a fly several feet and disappeared. Until today."_

"_Yes, that does makes sense. He undoubtedly used the fact that your brother was grieving to corrupt his soul by manipulating him somehow. I witnessed your brother unleashing his new powers upon the public earlier today. It was horrific to say the least. It is Abraxas that is also responsible for the atrocities that have occurred everywhere over the last couple of weeks. He has been spreading his influence to people all over by corrupting their souls, turning them into mindless killers who will obey him without question."_

_Scott looks at the strange man confused "How did he do all this? What the fuck is he and where is he now?"_

"_You may find this hard to believe, but I promise you that what I am about to tell you is the truth. Abraxas is not from your world, or even your universe. He does not exist on your plane of existence and is incorporeal on your world, so his first objective was to choose a herald to act out his every command. Giving them incredible powers, but also enslaving their minds, striping away all that they once were completely and replacing it with his own ideals. Unfortunately that was your brother. And now with your brother as his General, he's looking to build an army by corrupting the souls of human beings by finding the dark portion of the soul many humans are unaware of that they possess and infects it with a portion of his own. As you have seen, his influence has spread a great deal. He will not stop until he has spread his influence across the globe."_

_Scott comes to a realisation and clinches his fists "You just said 'your world' and you seem to know an awful lot about this, Abraxas. Just who the fuck are you, mate."_

_The strangers face remains friendly, as does his voice "My name is Bishop. I too, am not from this wor..."_

_Scott swings a right hook for 'man' called Bishop, but his punch goes straight through him as if punching the air. "What the fuck!"_

"_As I was saying...I too, am not from this world and also incorporeal. I've been chasing Abraxas for a very very long time. I'm what you humans would call 'one of the good guys'."_

_Scott looks sceptical "Really? Then why are you here talking to me, instead of out there taking down Abraxas and helping my brother. My parents are dead because of that thing, I won't lose my brother to it as well."_

_Bishop looks down feeling guilty "You have my deepest sympathies for your parents death, Scott. Unfortunately due to the fact that Abraxas now has a physical connection to this plane of existence, I cannot remove him from your world."_

_Scott runs his hands through his hair taking a deep breath "Let me guess, that connection is Ross."_

"_That is right. Only when his physical connection to this plane of existence has been severed, can I attack Abraxas head on and finally put an end to his reign of terror." he explains._

_Scott suddenly realises why this Bishop has come to him, but asks the question regardless "And how does the connection get severed exactly? Also, seeming that you're incorporeal, who going to do it."_

"_That is why I have come to you, Scott. No one knows your brother the way you do, making you the perfect person for the task. You are family, you are of the same bloodline and share a bond which I believe not even Abraxas can completely erase."_

"_That's all good in theory, mate, but have you seen my brother recently? He'd mostly likely kill me in an instant before I'd even had the chance to open my mouth. Plus what's saying that I'd definitely be able to get through to him. The last time we saw each other, he didn't exactly seem like he was open to reasoning with."_

_Bishop stands as if to attention, holding his hands behind his back. "That is the other reason that I have come to you, Scott. I would like you to be my herald. You will receive all the powers your brother has, your physical body will be enhanced on a cellular scale making you the peak of what a human could possibly be but could never achieve, making you stronger, faster, more intelligent, more agile, you'll heal faster, learn more quickly and more. You will be his equal, minus the murderous tendencies of course. I have looked into your soul, Scott Campbell, and seen that it is pure. Abraxas would not have an influence on you like he has so many others."_

"_But you never answered my question, Bishop. If he don't listen to me and stays under Abraxas's control. How do I sever the connection?" Scott asks, knowing the answer yet again._

_Bishop looks down again "The only other way would be to kill him. Severing his head from his body to be exact using a blade forged with a special metal. I know after what you have just had to go through with your parents deaths, that I'm asking a..."_

"_I'll do it." Scott interrupts._

_Bishop looks surprised for the second time "Are you sure about this? You are fully aware of what I am asking of you? Because there will be no going back once the transformation is complete. You will be my physical connection to this plane of existence. My herald. Abraxas will see you as his biggest threat, coming after you through your brother. Are you prepared to do what is necessary?."_

_Scott takes a moment looking around him. He knows that after doing this, his life will never be the same again. He then thinks back to the last time he'd spoken to his parents"My Dad made me promise him that if I can't save my brother, then I'd have to stop him, no matter what the cost. If killing him is the absolutely only way to save him, then it will be me that does it. He'd do the same for me...Now what do you want me to do?"_

_Bishop takes a step closer to Scott, raising one of his hands. "I will be transferring a portion of my power into you, the transformation will not take long, but it will hurt. A lot." Bishop goes to place his hand on Scott's chest. _

"_Wait! Wait!. How do I know you're telling the truth about all this?" Scott asks._

_Bishop lets a small grin appear "You do not know. You will have to trust me I am afraid."_

_Scott closes his eyes thinking he has nothing left to lose "Fuck it. Lets do this."_

"_Very well" Bishop says, slamming his hand onto Scott's chest with a flash of blue light._

_**Back at the Normandy Mess hall...**_

"And that's how I met Bishop and became the man I am today." Campbell concludes. His eyes glassy and reddened. He quickly composes himself accordingly.

"Wow, Campbell. That's one hell of a story. I never realised...I'm sorry about your parents." Shepard sits upright.

"It's okay, Shepard. Honestly. I use it everything that's happened as my motivation to find Abraxas and finally put an end to him once and for all. Any ways, I hope I didn't bore you too much with me unloading all my personal baggage on you, sir."

"Not in the slightest. I'm glad that we had the chance to have this talk, Campbell. I Just want you to remember that this isn't just your fight any more, we're all in this together now. Saren. Abraxas. We'll take them both down and if we can, we'll save your brother too somehow."

"Thanks, Shepard. You're a good bloke."

Shepard gives a nod "What else are friends for. Now if you'll please excuse me, I probably should check in on Garrus, Wrex and Tali and see how they're settling in." Shepard stands. "I'll catch you later, Campbell."

"See you later, Shepard." Campbell replies, watching Shepard head out of the mess hall.

_**Back in the Normandy cockpit...**_

Joker switches off the holoscreen. After listening to Campbell's story, he finds himself having an all new level of respect for him "I never realised that Campbell had been through so much. Poor guy had only just lost his parents before being asked to hunt down his brother of all things. That's brutal."

Ashley felt the same as joker "He didn't even have the time to grieve properly." Ashley found herself feeling sorry for Campbell. She can't imagine what it would be like to lose her mother or any of her sisters in that way, but she does know it would break her. She admired his resolve to keep fighting and she decided that she was going to see how he was later. "You are not to say a word of this to anyone, Joker. Not even Campbell himself. It's bad enough that we listened in at all."

Joker feels a wave of guilt "Your right, Chief. I swear I won't say a thing."

Ashley looked at the time "Damn it! I gotta go. I need to head to the requisitions office in the Citadel to pick up my things from Eden Prime before they close."

"What about my sandwich?" he asks not sounding happy.

"You know where the mess hall is, Joker. You spend too much time up here anyways. It'll do you good to get out that chair." Ashley says with a smile.

"Yeah, says the one who wouldn't break almost every bone in their body from a miss-step down the stairs." he replies sarcastically.

Ashley heads out of the cockpit towards her locker in the cargo bay to grab her requisition forms for her belongings. She was dying to get her personal belongings back. She'd been using the same set of fatigues since she came aboard and borrowing simple things like toothpaste, shower gel and deodorant from other generous crew members willing to share. Then there were her poetry books, family pictures and other luxuries that one needs when out in space to pass the time whilst not on duty.

_**Back in the mess hall...**_

Campbell gets up out of his chair after finishing his drink and walks over to where Kaidan is still working hard. "So, Kaidan. How much of that were you listening too? I don't mind, I was just wondering."

Kaidan stands up straight wiping his hands with a rag "Well I figured that you didn't mind me listening in, seeming that I was working only several feet away. You've got quite the background."

"Tell me about it,, but I didn't mind you listening to all that because the way I see it, if we're now fighting the same enemy then I wanted you to know all that I did. It would be wrong for me to keep any information from the people who are putting their necks on the line for me. I'm gonna brief Chief Williams on everything I know as well when I see her next. I hope she didn't get too much of a dressing down from Shepard because of me."

Kaidan grins "Ashley will be fine. I bet she's already over it."

"She told me if I passed out back at the Citadel, then she was going to kick my ass."

Kaidan actually laughs a little "Then I would stay clear of her path for a while longer then. But what are you going to do now? The Normandy isn't that big of a ship."

Campbell raises an eyebrow "Well I was thinking about upgrading my armor and maybe buy a new rifle or pistol seeming that I have to now keep the use of my TK down to a bare minimum, but I'm obviously lacking the credits. So, I'm going to nip over to the Citadel and see if I can trade in my old combat armor that I brought with me from my world. Surely It must be worth something seeming that its over 165 years old."

"That sounds like a good idea, Campbell. Make sure you get a good price for it though."

"Hopefully, but I'm not expecting millions though. Just enough to buy what I need would be sweet. Right then, I'd best be off before Chief Williams finds me down here and bitch slaps me. I'll see you later, Kaidan." says Campbell, before heading off.

"Later, Campbell." he replies, returning to work.

**Authors notes**

**Well that was a long chapter. I hope that the next one wont take as long to get out as this one. As usual all comments are welcomed. Thanks for reading.**

**Laters **

**Barnett**


	8. Chapter 8

**Authors note**** : With the last chapter being so big I guess you can consider this to be 'part 2' to it so it's not as long. Thanks again to all thats taking the tie to read this.**

**Disclaimer**** :Bioware owns all that is Mass Effect related**

Mass Intervention

Chapter 7

**Location**** : The Citadel**

Campbell walks along one of the walkways over the Presidium lake. It is the first time since he's arrived in this universe that he's actually been by himself. And what a place to be by himself in. The place took his breath away and he was amazed how the giant space station managed to simulate the night and day skies. He definitely preferred the Citadel at night with the night sky and the various illuminations which only enhances the beauty of the place. He couldn't remember the last time it was when he could just chill out, take a break and relax. Back home it was a case of being on guard 24/7 in case of attack and it had been pretty hectic since arriving here too. He must've been shot at on what...At least 4 occasions already. And on a space station of all things. _A space station. _If he wasn't living it then he'd never believe what was happening. He was in space for fucks sake. With actual aliens too. It was like he had to keep reminding himself of that is was all really happening just to keep himself from cracking up. Then his mind drifted back to his earlier discussion.

The talk with Shepard had left him feeling a mixture of emotions. It was a good feeling to have everything out in the open, but at the same time reliving those memories left him with the thought of his parents weighing heavy on his mind. At least there is the fact that his home world was now safe from Abraxas and no one else has to suffer because of that monster. A small victory on its own.

But as much as Campbell was enjoying his surroundings during his brief visit, he did still have an objective to complete while he's there. He'd asked a C-sec officer where there best place was to trade antiques for credits and was told to head towards the emporium. A volus trader there called Telak Den is supposed to have a high interest in human artefacts. Upon arrival Campbell spots the small alien trader, takes a deep breath and walks towards him.

"Excuse me. Are you Telak Den?" asks Campbell.

"_Tsssk_. Greetings, Earth-clan. Yes. I am Telak Den. Can I interest you in anything in particular. _Tsssk_ My stock ranges from manufacturer licences and ammunition upgrades to weapons and armor. _Tsssk._" The loud breaths of the volus can be heard from his enviro-suit in between each sentence.

"Well a friend of mine told me that you was one of the best merchants on the Citadel and that you have an exquisite eye for earth antiques.?" he lies trying to appeal to the traders vanity.

"Well you heard correct, Earth-clan. I can promise the best trading rates. _Tsssk. _What do you have that you would to trade. _Tsssk." _asks the volus curiously.

Campbell places his rucksack down and takes out his old armor, showing it to the trader. "It's a complete 170 year old battle armor from earth. It's in prime condition with no signs of decay over the years. Probably seen in some of earths museums." he tries his best to sell it, but sales is not his strong point.

"_Tsssk. _Hmmm, interesting. It looks almost new. Are you sure this is authentic?"

"100 percent legit I swear." he reassures him.

"_Tsssk. _I will need to run a scan with my omni-tool if you don't mind?._Tsssk._"

Campbell takes a step back "Please do, you wont be disappointed I assure you."He watches as the volus trader opens his omni-tool, scanning it in various ways.

Telak Den finishes his scans and is surprised to find that the armor is genuine "I have to admit, I am surprised to find that you are telling the truth, Earth-clan. _Tsssk_. This armor is worth a substantial amount. What kind of price are you looking for it?_ Tsssk"_

Campbell smiled widely on the inside "Well I was thinking about a trade. I'm in need of a new set of armor and an assault rifle. May I have a look of your stock list?"

"By all means Earth-clan. Take your time. _Tsssk_." Telak Den sends a full stock list of his items for sale over to Campbell via his omni-tool. "I have some of the best armors and weapons available on the presidium. _Tsssk_." he boasts before going back to running more scans on Campbell's armor.

Campbell scrolls down the list of armors first. They ranged in all different types. Weight, shield strength, damage protection and even colour. 'Best stick to lightweight armor if I want to fight up close with my katana. Hmmm that red and black armor looks sweet. Now for rifles.' He eyes each rifle on the list carefully, checking the weapon statistics for overheating, power and accuracy.

After several minutes a decision is made "Right then, Mr Den, I've made my choice."

Telak Den closes his omni-tool "What will it be, Earth-clan? _Tsssk_"

"I would like a full set of your lightweight, mark 7 Colossus battle armor and one of your Avenger assault rifles, please." Campbell looks down at the volus hoping for a positive response.

"Is that all? _Tsssk_"

Campbell is surprised by the merchants response but keeps his game face 'Is that all? How much is my old armor actually worth? Lets try and push my luck.' he thinks to himself before speaking "Oh, I'm sorry. I meant to say with 10,000 credits on top of that also."

"You have a deal, Earth-clan! _Tsssk_" Telak Den blurts out. "Let me have my assistant fetch over your order. _Tsssk_. Do you have a credit chit that I may transfer the funds over to? _Tsssk_" Telak Den says rapidly as if to seal the deal as fast as possible. He sends the order over to his turian assistant who's standing nearby for retrieval.

'Fucking hell, he took that offer rather quick. Maybe I should have asked for more credits. Shit!' he mentally scolds himself and hands over his credit chit to the volus merchant.

Telak Den transfers the 10,000 credits over and hands it back to Campbell "I have to say it has been a pleasure to business with you, Earth-clan. _Tsssk_. If there is anything you need at all here on the Citadel, please feel free to come by and ask for my assistance. _Tsssk_." he offers just as the turian assistant brings out Campbell's order on a trolley. The two large metallic containers being too heavy to carry out by hand.

"Actually there is, Mr Den."

"Please, call me Telak. _Tsssk_." clearly in a good mood from his trade with Campbell.

"Thanks, Telak. Would you be able to point me in the direction of the Alliance requisitions desk? I'm still quite new to the Citadel." he asks. He needed some more sets of fatigues along with other bare essentials like toiletries, underwear etc etc. Hopefully it should be free of charge if its standard issue, but at least he had some credits now to pay if it isn't.

_**Meanwhile elsewhere on the Citadel...**_

Ashley was patiently sitting in the waiting area opposite the Alliance requisitions desk. She was eager to retrieve her personal belongings from Eden Prime, but the serviceman had informed her that they hadn't arrived yet. She had realised it was wishful thinking to believe that her things would be there so soon, but she wanted to try regardless. She missed being able to just sit down and relax with one of her books in her downtime or having pictures of her mom and sisters to look at to keep her smiling through long boring rotations. Disappointed, she still decided to grab some other things like some standard issue fatigues, toiletries, underwear etc etc and was told to take a seat. That was an hour and a half ago. She looked around at the lack of other people waiting and came to her own conclusions to why she was being made to wait. 'Come on, Ash. You've faced worse than this. They're just trying to get under your skin. Rise above it.' she reminded herself.

Another 15 minutes pass by. She regrets not dragging Joker or Kaidan along with her for the company, but then again, Joker probably wouldn't have left that pilots chair of his and Kaidan was ever so determined to fix that computer console. She thought about Campbell, but then instantly felt guilty for eavesdropping on his conversation with Shepard earlier. 'God, I'm bored.' she thinks. She gets up after finally losing patience and walks over to the desk. "Excuse me, are the items I requested ready to be collected yet. I've been waiting for over an hour."

The serviceman glares at Ashley knowing all to well who she is from when she first handed in her requisition order. "Name please?"

Ashley can't believe what she's hearing "It's the same one I told you an hour and a half ago."

"You'd do well to drop the attitude, soldier!" the serviceman fires back "Now, name please?"

Ashley takes a deep breath and keeps her cool "Gunnery Chief Ashley. M. Williams."

The serviceman spends about a minute looking at the holoscreen in front of him before speaking "I'm afraid your order has be _misplaced_. You're going to have to fill out another form." He places a datapad on the counter for Ashley to fill out.

It takes all of Ashley's will power not to jump over the counter and kick four shades of shit out of the man. "Are you fucking kidding me. I've been sitting there for 90 minutes."

"Then you wont mind waiting another 5 minutes to fill out another form then will you, _Williams._" Replies the arrogant serviceman.

Ashley was now screaming inside, but she calmly took the datapad and returned back to where she was sitting. 'Better than the best, Ash.' she reminded herself.

Campbell decided to carry the two metal containers with his brand new armor and Avenger rifle inside, under each arm. They would be considerably heavy to the average human, but he wasn't any average human. Not by a long shot. He arrives at the requisitions desk and the serviceman behind the counter glares at him wide-eyed. He places each container down on the floor with a thud causing Ashley to look up at the noise and she spots him. He gets a datapad from the serviceman and turns spotting her.

"Well well well, Chief Williams. I wasn't expecting to see you here." says Campbell. A wide smile appearing on his face at the sight of Ashley, forgetting about the ass kicking he was promised by her earlier in the day.

"I'm not here by choice, believe me. How are you feeling?" she replies, smiling back.

Campbell walks over and takes a seat next to Ashley "Much better. Dr Chakwas worked her magic and fixed me up great, plus she found out what was causing me all the pain."

"Well you had us all worried for a second back there. What did she say?" Ashley's bad mood began to fade without her realising.

"To cut a long story short, my brain is trying to decipher the Prothean data I received from the beacon and failing miserably at it, so now every time I use my TK it overloads my brain and could possibly kill me." he briefly explains.

"I knew that enhanced brain of yours wasn't that much of a big deal." she jokes. "But seriously, I'm glad that you're okay."

"Aw, thanks Chief. I didn't realise that you cared so much." he teases.

"Don't get too far ahead of yourself, marine. I was just getting at the fact that you are a good soldier to have in the field with that fancy power of yours." she hits back pretending that she's more bothered about his skills as a fighter.

"Well I'm not at a complete loss. Dr Chakwas gave me some injectable pens that contain the same medication that she used to treat me, so if I find myself in a situation where I have to use my TK, I can just give myself a jab to counteract my brain 'overload'. The only downside being that I'll eventually build a resistance to it each time I use it. Guess I'll have to save the use of my TK for when you need me to save your ass in the future." he grins.

"Yeah, that'll be the day, Corporal." she smiles back "So what's in the boxes?" she asks.

'God, she has a gorgeous smile.' he thinks before realising where this train of thought is leading 'Get a grip, Scott. You have other priorities, plus she's your superior you idiot.' he reminds himself. "Well after finding out about my recent condition, I decided to trade in my old battle armor that I was wearing when we met. With it being over 165 years old I was thinking it would be worth something, right? So I found a volus merchant over at the financial district on the presidium who instead of just giving me credits outright, traded me for some new armor and an assault rifle with 10,000 credits on top. I think I got a good deal, but I'm not really sure to be honest."

"Well I'm definitely the wrong person to answer that for you, but if you bring your new rifle over by me at the armory, I'll be happy to give it a good looking over for you." she offers.

"Thanks, I'll make sure that I swing by later." Campbell then holds up his datapad "The reason why I'm here though is that I just need some supplies like more fatigues, toothbrush and underwear y'know. Everything I have at the minute is borrowed and I just need my own things. What about you?" he asks.

"Well I was actually hoping that my personal things had arrived from Eden Prime, but I was told they hadn't." she glares over at the serviceman behind the desk. "So like you, I'm just stocking up on some things to tie me down till the next time we visit the Citadel." she explains with a disappointed look. She was going to tell him about the hassle she was getting from behind the desk, but she decided against it in case he started asking why.

"I'm sure your things be here the next time we come, Chief." he comments while making a start on the requisitions form. "I'm sorry if I got you into any trouble with Shepard earlier. I should never have put you in that situation."

"Don't worry about it, Campbell. I'm a big girl and knew the consequences." Ashley wasn't mad at him. It was her decision after all and therefore her own fault. Plus since listening in on Campbell and Shepard's conversation earlier, she found herself looking at Campbell in a new light and cutting him some slack.

"Well I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry regardless and that it wont be happening again. Shepard has a unique way of showing you the errors in your ways, doesn't he?"

Ashley lets out a little laugh "Yeah he sure does."

"How about we get these handed in, pick up our things and you let me walk you back to the Normandy?" Campbell has been looking for an opportunity to talk to Ashley. He liked her and after telling everything he knew to Shepard and Kaidan in regards to Abraxas, Bishop and his brother, he also wanted to tell her the same. The last thing he wanted is for someone to get hurt because of him not sharing information that could be important.

"Well seeming that you haven't actually managed to return to the Normandy without being carried in unconscious yet, that might be a good idea." she says, laughing again.

Campbell laughs with her "Yeah I think Dr Chakwas will start charging me rent if I spend any more time sleeping in her med-bay."

They both fill out the required information on what they need on the datapad forms and Campbell walks over to the desk and hands them in and sits back down to wait for their names to be called out. "Chief, I've been meaning to talk to you about a few things in regards to what we're gonna be going up against with Abraxas and my brother. There are certain things I haven't told you about how I got caught up in all this mess and what I think they're planning with Saren that I think you deserve to know. I've already spoken to Shepard and Kai..."

Ashley cuts him off "Campbell wait! I have a small confession first." she pauses looking down shamefully "I was with Joker back on the Normandy and he was scrolling through the security cams where we spotted you and Shepard in the mess hall. We wondered what you was talking about and... And we kind of listened in on your conversation. I'm so sorry, Campbell. I know it was wrong and we should never have done it. I'll understand if your angry or..."

It was Campbell's turn to cut in now "Chill out, Chief. I was just going to tell you most of what Shepard and I talked about anyways. So it kind of saves me having to go through it all over again."

Ashley still looks apologetic "We was going to switch it off as soon as Shepard finished talking about himself but then you started talking about yourself, and we just...y'know."

Campbell finally figures out why she's feeling so guilty "Yeah, I have to admit I wasn't going to tell Shepard everything that I did and just stick to the facts that's going to be relevant to the mission, but I guess I got carried away in the memory. I've never talked about any of that stuff before you see...not to anyone." he raises his eyebrows in realisation "Shit, it's the first opportunity I've actually had to talk to anyone about it with. I mean I had Bishop guiding and training me over the months that followed, but it took a while before he became a friend to me. Other than him it's just been me on my own...It felt good to talk about it though... just to get it out."

Ashley truly felt for Campbell. On the outside he's this tough, deadly, powerful, confident soldier, but deep down he must have had to be hurting. His home was attacked by some monster, his brother turned into some ruthless murderer and then his parents were murdered in such a horrible way. Then before he had the chance to take it all in, he had to become the 'man' he is today to hunt down his brother and most likely have to kill him himself. And on top of that, 6 months down the line he gets thrown into a whole new universe 170 years in the future with no friends, no help, nothing. She can't even begin to imagine how someone even deals with that. "You know if you ever need to talk in the future, Campbell. About anything. You can talk to me. I may not be able to understand what you've been or going through, but I'm a good listener. You're not on your own anymore."

"Thanks, Chief. That means a lot." They lock eyes with each other, sharing a moment of silence before Campbell breaks it by changing the subject.

"So I see we have a few more new crew members on the Normandy."

Ashley rolls her eyes "You heard about that, huh."

Campbell picks up from her reaction that she doesn't exactly agree with Shepard's decision. "You sound like you don't approve of having them onboard."

"Well I was thinking about talking to Shepard about Vakarian and Wrex. I'm not sure they should be allowed full access to the ship."

Campbell is surprised to hear this from Ashley. As far as he knew, the council races were allies of the Alliance. "I know they aren't human, but aren't the Council races on our side?"

"For now, yes, but the Normandy is the most advanced ship in the Alliance Navy. I don't think they should have free range to poke around the vital systems. Engines, sensors, weapons."

"What are you saying then, Chief? You don't trust the Alliance's allies?"

"Well I wouldn't call them allies, myself. I think we, as in humanity, need to learn to stand on our own two feet." she debates.

Campbell finds this side to Ashley intriguing. He didn't think she felt this way about alien races. Then he remembers when she didn't seem too grateful to Garrus back at Chora's Den, even though he saved her ass big time. He decides to press this issue more with her "Surely to stand on our own two feet doesn't mean we have to do it on our own without any help."

Ashley stands firm in her opinion "I don't think we should turn down allies, I just think we shouldn't bet on them staying allies. As noble as the Council members seem to you right now, when their backs are against the wall they'll abandon us."

"Y'know some would say that sounds quite pessimistic."

Ashley shrugs "A pessimist is what an optimist calls a realist. Let me put it this way. If you're fighting a bear and the only way to survive is to sick your dog on it and run, you'll do it. As much as you love your dog, it isn't human. It's not racism, not really. Members of their own species will always be more important to them than humans are."

Campbell actually looks as surprised as he feels now "Wow, Chief. Sounds like you have put some serious thought into these beliefs. There must be a reason behind that?"

"My family have defended the Alliance since it was founded. My father, grandfather, great-grandmother, they all picked up a rifle and swore the oath of service. I guess we just tend to think of Earth's interests as our own." she explains with conviction.

"Well I guess you have a lot more first hand experience with aliens that I do. I mean up until we arrived at the Citadel, I'd never met an alien before. Luckily Kaidan gave me all the info I needed to research the Council races before we got here so I could prepare, but still, when I first saw a turian it was like I was in Star Wars movie."

Ashley raises and eyebrow "Star Wars?"

Campbell shakes his head seeing that his sci-fi reference is lost on Ashley "Nevermind, Chief."

"Well I've not had that much experience working with aliens to be fair. Mainly I've been groundside as part of the service garrison forces. I did get a rotation on a space station for training. Every marine a rifleman, every rifleman ZG certified."

Now it was Campbell's turn to be confused "ZG certified?"

"Its means Zero Gravity certified. Every marine needs it to serve in the fleet. You also have it on your 'official Alliance record' along with your other necessary requirements to serve in the fleet. I er...had a look at what Anderson had written up for you." she admits.

"Well aren't you the curious cat, Chief Williams." he says playfully. "But I have to say I'm surprised that you've mainly served groundside. You see I also had the opportunity to look at your record along with the rest of the Normandy's crew back when I first came onboard. Captain Anderson thought it would be good for me to familiarise myself with the crew. Yours looked spotless and you had some sick technical scores when it came to firearms. I would have thought you'd be serving with the Alliance fleet not groundside."

Ashley's heart skipped a beat. 'Shit! Think fast Ashley before he starts asking more questions. What's he doing looking in your record anyway?.' she thinks before just deciding on avoiding the half question. "Anyway, that's why I've no served with many aliens."

Campbell instantly picks up on the hint that her not serving with the fleet must be a touchy subject and decides not to press the issue. "You mentioned that your family all served in the Alliance. Any war heroes in the family I might read about in the history books?"

Ashley looks away feeling a rush of panic overcome her 'First he asks about my ground posts and now my family. He knows about Shanxi and my grandfather, he must do.' she thinks to herself before answering "Not that I'm aware of." she replies to see if he knows continues. "Was it just you and your brother that served in the military in your family?" she asks turning the attention back to him.

"Yeah, just the two of us. Though I'd say I was the more career driven between the two of us. He never seemed one for promotions in his career. He always said that promotions always led to sitting behind desks and getting fat." he laughs a little "Where I wanted to go all the way to the top and to have my own command, but I take it you heard all this and my reasons for signing up in the marines earlier."

Ashley shows her 'I'm sorry' face again that she had earlier "Erm...Yeah I caught that part."

Campbell smiles at her reassuringly "I always wanted to make a difference in the world and after the terrorist attacks back home in 2001, I thought what better way to do that than by saving lives whilst serving my country."

"I couldn't agree more. Looks like we both have marine blood running through our veins."

"That we do, Chief. I definitely think you should bring up your concerns with Shepard when you get the chance though. I'm sure he'll listen to what you have to say, but I get the impression that he doesn't make decisions like adding new crew members regardless of them being Alliance or not, without thinking it through thoroughly."

Ashley thinks about it for a second "Yeah, maybe your right. I'll see if I can catch him when we get back to the Normandy and see what he says."

"Campbell!, _Williams!_" shouts the serviceman from behind the desk letting the 2 marines know that their orders are ready to be taken away.

Campbell and Ashley both get up and grab their duffel bags with Campbell sliding his onto his back and then picking up his 2 large containers with his new purchases in them, clearly looking like he was carrying more weight than a normal human could. They then set off back for the Normandy, talking about their experiences in their own military services and comparing the two to see how much has changed.

Ashley's disappointing and frustrating trip to the Citadel turned out to be quite the pleasant one due to the arrival of Campbell. She was real glad they had a chance to talk and get to know each other a little better. She also couldn't help but find herself noticing how attractive he actually was. A small part of her wished that as she found out more about what kind of person he is that she'd be put off by it and the attractiveness would fade but it was more like the opposite. Then the marine in her would remind her of the rules against fraternization, even though Campbell isn't technically Alliance, he still is on paper and therefore off limits. She could still look though she thought with a smile.

**Location**** : The Normandy**

They both arrived back onboard the Normandy and headed back down to their lockers in the Cargo bay to drop off their things. It was late and they both were to attend the Council meeting in the morning so sleep was the next thing on both their agendas. Though something still puzzled Campbell.

Campbell closes his locker door and turns to Ashley "Chief, I was just wondering where the crew sleep on the Normandy? I mean I swear I've explored this whole ship just about and I just cant seem to find the crews sleeping quarters."

Ashley lets out a laugh and then composes herself "I guess you've spent most of the time sleeping in the med-bay so you haven't had the chance to sleep in the Normandy's sleeper pods."

Campbell face is one of confusion and disbelief "What the fuck is a sleeper pod? And please tell me it has a mattress, pillows and covers."

Ashley laughs again "Not exactly. On Alliance vessels there is a rotation of 8 hours split between the crew so the ship is manned constantly at all times. The Alliance brass thought the best way for this to work is to install sleeper pods to save space and be more effective for rest. You might have seen them up on the same deck as the mess hall."

Campbell was so looking forward to a soft warm bed to sleep on and now he gets hit with this, but still he smiles with Ashley's laughter "You mean those 'glass coffin' looking things all lined up? That's so fucked up."

Ashley finds Campbell reaction very entertaining "That's the ones. They're not so bad once you've tried them. Basically you set the time you want to be woken up and step in. Then the pod vents a sedative inside to induce a deep sleep to make sure you get a proper rest period. Then at the time you want to be woken up, the pod releases a stimulant inside effectively waking you up and then you exit feeling refreshed and ready to go about your business."

Campbell is having none of it "I'll tell you what, Chief. Why don't you go and having a lovely nice sleep in your sleeper coffin and I think I'll just sneak my way into the med-bay and sleep there for the night."

Ashley shrugs taking a few steps backwards "Y'know, Campbell. Maybe you should look into another line of work with your powers on the fritz and now you cant even spend a night in a sleeper pod." she teases with a wide smile.

Campbell smiles back shaking his head "I've always thought I'd fall back on male modelling actually, Chief."

Ashley laughs "You're hot, but you're not that hot." she fires back before realising what she just said in horror as her eyes slightly widen.

Campbell steps forward with a cheeky grin "So you think I'm hot do you."

Ashley's smiles fades and she turns to walk to the elevator "Goodnight, Campbell." is all she can say as her cheeks turn red. 'Think before you speak, Ash..'

"Goodnight, Chief." he replies, watching her walk and admiring the view.

Ashley steps into the elevator and turns to see Campbell still standing their with his smug grin on his face. "Hey, Campbell?" she shout before she presses the button for the mess hall. "My friends call me Ashley." She selects the mess and the elevator doors begin to close. 'My God Ashley, just stop talking and go already'.

"Goodnight...Ash." he corrects himself making Ashley turn even more red. His mind drift for a moment before he snaps himself out of it. 'That's just a bomb waiting to go off, Scott. You definitely are gonna have to watch yourself with that one.' he warns himself as he makes his way to the elevator.


	9. Chapter 9

**Authors note**** : Just a thanks to my readers for y'know...reading. :-) Taking on any beta readers if anyone is interested.**

**Disclaimer**** :Bioware owns all that is Mass Effect related.**

Mass Intervention

Chapter 8

**Location**** : SSV Normandy**

Campbell was already geared up and waiting at the airlock for Shepard and the others. He'd managed to sneak into the med-bay last night an grab about 5 hours sleep before his alarm on his omni-tool woke him up so he could sneak back out again before Dr Chakwas returned to her shift. Due to his enhanced physiology, 5 hours sleep was more than enough rest for him but he knew that sneaking into the med-bay last night was a one off and he would have to find other arrangements.

He had decided to hit the showers and then take his new Avenger rifle down to the firing range for a trial run. It took a little while to get used to, but the weapon was impressive. Not only a fraction of the weight of the assault rifles back home, but the speed to which he could switch targets was unreal. Maybe he wouldn't miss his 'TK' as much as he thought he would.

After getting reacquainted with using a rifle he had grabbed a quick bite to eat in the mess which was still an unpleasant experience, but a necessary one if he wanted to keep his strength up and then went back down to the armory to put on his new armor. Instantly he was loving how it felt on him. Much better than the standard Alliance armor that he had worn previously with a much higher quality in protective plating and shields. He especially liked the colours too as he thought they gave him a kind of badass look. He found that he still had an hour to kill before the others would be ready so he went up to the cockpit where he knew Joker would be as always in the pilot seat. They spoke about how Joker and Ashley had listened in on Campbell and Shepard in the mess yesterday and Joker did seem genuinely apologetic to which Campbell forgave him without hesitation. Joker being the typical pilot he is, asked a lot about what the various fighter jets that the military used back in 2013. Even though Campbell explained that they were laughable compared to what the Alliance had today, Joker was still fascinated to hear about them.

He had found that most of the people that knew about where and when he was from was keen to hear about what life was like back in 2013, but he had trouble understanding why seeming that they were living the lives of what he has only ever seen on television or read about in books as fiction. He also could sense they wanted to ask about Bishop, fighting his brother and Abraxas, but figured they didn't press the issue with him thinking it was a touchy subject.

Campbell checked the time, it was 0800hrs sharp and right on time he sees Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan enter the CIC making their way up to Campbell who's leaning against the wall next to the airlock doorway. "Morning Campers!" he greets them all in a chirpy tone.

Shepard greets him with a nod "Morning, Corporal. New armor I see."

"I take it you went and traded in your old armor?" asks Kaidan, taking a good look at Campbell.

Campbell does a small turn "Yep. It's a sweet colour too. I also got a new assault rifle and 10,000 credits." he comments proudly.

"Nice work." comments Kaidan feeling almost jealous.

"That's the red and black Colossus mark 7 armor." Ashley announces to no one in particular. Then her eyes focus the rifle on his back "Now that is a nice piece of weaponry. The mark 6 Avenger rifle made by the Elkoss Combine corporation. Damn, Campbell, your old armor must have been worth a small fortune to pay for both of those and 10,000 credits. You definitely gotta let me have an hour with that rifle down in the firing range." she asks enthusiastically and wide eyed.

Campbell smiles shaking his head at Ashley's interest in his...rifle "Don't worry, Ashley, I'll let you have some fun with her later." He looks around the CIC "Where's Tali and Garrus?" he asks "I thought they would be joining us for the Council hearing?"

"Udina could only get clearance for Alliance members only. They're going to have to stay on the Normandy unfortunately." answers Shepard. "C'mon, we better get moving. The hearing will be starting soon." Shepard then leads the way off of the Normandy to which everyone follows.

**Location**** : Citadel Tower**

Shepard leads Campbell, Kaiden and Ashley walked out of the elevator to the Citadel tower. All four soldiers are excited but nervous at the same time. They all know that the evidence that the quarian had provided clearly confirmed that Saren was a traitor to the council, but they didn't know what the next step was going to be. Shepard personally hopes that right after he wipes their smug looks off of their faces with the evidence they have, that the Council is going to see sense and send the Normandy after him with their full support of their own fleet. There is also the fact Saren isn't working alone either and if what Campbell says about his brother and Abraxas is right, then they'll need all the help of off the Council they can get.

They march onwards through the massive hall of the tower catching the attention of the various politicians and diplomats on the way. They all spot Captain Anderson at the bottom of the stairway of the Council chambers.

"Come on. The hearing has already started and Udina's presenting the quarian's evidence to the Council." Anderson says before leading the team up the stairs to the platform that they had stood before the Council previously where Udina was playing the evidence out loud to the Councillors.

"_Eden Prime was a major victory! The beacon has brought us one more step closer to finding the Conduit."_

Then the female voice _"And one step closer to the return of the Reapers."_

Then finally the voice of Ross Campbell going by the name of Maverick sending a chill down Scott Campbell's spine. _"Marking the rise of Abraxas, whole once again." _

Udina steps forward extending his arm out as if to hand something to the Councillors over the distance between them "You wanted proof. There you have it, Councillors."

The Turian Councillor takes a deep breath "This evidence is irrefutable, Ambassador. Saren will be stripped of his Spectre status and all efforts will be made to bring him in to answer for his crimes."

The Asari Councillor turns to the Turian Councillor "I recognise the female voice, the one speaking about Reapers. Matriarch Benezia. But I don't recognise the third voice."

Shepard now steps forward "Who is Matriarch Benezia?"

"Matriarch's are very powerful asari who have entered their final stage of their lives. Revered for their wisdom and experience gained over their lifetime, they serve as guides and mentors to my people. Matriarch Benezia is a powerful biotic, and she had many followers. She will make a formidable ally for Saren." she explains "Do you know who the third voice belongs to in the recording?"

"His name is Maverick. He's working with Saren." declared Anderson.

"That was the name of the man who Saren had said sent his regards to Corporal Campbell. Do you know this man, Corporal?" asks the asari Councillor.

Campbell feels all eyes on him all of a sudden "We knew each other...once. He's a very dangerous individual to say the least." It wasn't a lie as such. The man his brother is today is not the same man that he knew.

"I see." she replies.

Now the Salarian Councillor speaks up "I'm more interested in hearing about these Reapers and the apparent rise of Abraxas is it? What do you know about them?" he asks.

Anderson had prepared for this question. Where they had the geth memory core to explain the existence of the Reapers, they only had Campbell's word to state the threat of Abraxas. That and the fact he saw Abraxas in his vision, which the Council had already dismissed the last time they stood before them. "In regards to the Reapers we only have what we have extracted from the geth's memory core. The Reapers were an ancient race of machines that wiped out the Protheans. Then they vanished."

"The geth believe the Reapers are gods. And Saren is the prophet for their return." adds Shepard.

"The recording clearly suggests that Abraxas is clearly linked to the return of the Reapers. And if they wiped out the Protheans then it is also clear that he is just as much as a threat as they are to the galaxy." Campbell was trying to convince them of the threat Abraxas posed, but at the same time not giving away the fact of how he actually knows it for a fact. If he told them the whole truth they would think he's insane and damage the credibility of the case their trying to put forward here.

Udina glares at Campbell as if to say _'Why the hell are you even talking! Shut up!' _but Campbell just ignores him.

"We think that the Conduit is the key to bringing the Reapers back thus also bringing back Abraxas. Saren's searching for it and that's why he attacked Eden Prime." Anderson concludes.

"Do we even know what this Conduit is?" asks the Salarian Councillor.

"Saren thinks it can bring back the Reapers. I'd say that's bad enough." states Shepard.

The Turian Councillor shakes his head "Listen to what you're saying! Saren wants to bring back the machines that wiped out all life in the galaxy? And that he's in league with this Maverick to also bring back a being as equally threatening? Impossible. It has to be. Where did the Reapers go? Why did they vanish? How come we've found no trace of their existence nor have we ever heard of this Abraxas before? If they were real, we would have found something by now!"

"Listen to me." Shepard demands stepping to the front of the group "I tried to warn you about Saren , and you refused to face the truth. Don't make the same mistake again."

"This is different, Commander." the asari Councillor fires back "You proved Saren betrayed the Council. We all agree that he's using the geth to search for the Conduit, but we don't really know why."

"The Reapers and are obviously just a myth as I'm sure so is this Abraxas you speak of, Commander. A convenient lie to cover Saren's true purpose. A legend he is using to bend the geth and his other allies to his will." the Salarian Councillor adds.

Shepard was getting angry. How blind could they be? "50,000 years ago, the Reapers wiped out all galactic civilisation and from what we've learnt, Abraxas was there when it happened. If Saren finds the Conduit, it will happen again!"

"Saren is a rougue agent on the run for his life. He no longer has the rights or resources of a Spectre. The Council has stripped him of his position." says the Turian Councillor, playing down the situation.

'Jesus fucking Christ, these people are bigger dickheads than the politicians back home' Campbell thinks to himself, also getting angry at how difficult they are all being. They would soon be pissing in their pants if his brother and Saren succeed in their missions. He wants to shout at them and make them realise that they're all fucked if they don't act now, but he knows it's not that simple. It would probably do more harm than good.

Udina points right at the Council "That's not good enough! You know he's hiding somewhere in the Traverse. Send your fleet in!" he shouts angrily.

Shepard and the others are surprised at Udina's outburst 'Maybe he isn't the weasel we all think he is' Shepard thinks to himself, but then thinks twice realising that he's just relishing in the fact that after Saren made humanity look stupid the first time round and now he's getting the chance for some payback.

"A fleet cannot track down one man, Ambassador." the Salarian Councillor says dismissively.

Udina composes himself "A Citadel fleet could secure the entire region. Keep the geth from attacking any more of our colonies."

"Or it could trigger a war with the Terminus systems!" the Turian Councillor fires at Udina "We won't be dragged into a galactic confrontation over a few dozen human colonies!"

Both Ashley and Kaidan look at each other at that last statement as it clearly sounded that the safety of humanity was not on the Councils priority list. Campbell literally had to fight off the urge to tell them to go fuck themselves.

Shepard keeps his cool though, with a flawless poker face "Every time humanity asks for help you ignore us!"

Udina looks back at Shepard seeing he has a point "Shepard's right. I'm sick of this Council and its anti-human bull..."

"Ambassador!" the Asari Councillor cuts in before he manages to finish his sentence, at the same time the gasps of various diplomats and politicians can be heard who have been watching from a distance. There is another solution. A way to stop Saren that does not involve fleets or armies" She then looks over to the Turian Councillor sensing that he know what she is suggesting.

"No! It's too soon. Humanity is not ready for the responsibilities that come with joining the Spectres." says the Turian, clearly against the idea.

Shepard catches on right away at what the Asari Councillor is suggesting and speaks up "You don't have to send a fleet into the Traverse, and the Ambassador gets his human Spectre. Everybody's happy." And he knows that they would also be able to act as they please with no interference too.

All three Council members look at each other realising that this was probably the best course of action to take and with a nod to each other, they agree and begin tapping on the consoles that each have in front of them until the Asari Councillor finally speaks up. "Commander Shepard, please step forward."

Shepard looks over to Anderson to which he gives a nod. Shepard does as he is asked and walks right to the front of the platform and stands straight with his hands behind his back. Whispers can be heard from the various witnesses that have gathered to watch the proceedings that are transpiring. The coronation of the first human Spectre.

Campbell looks around sensing that he himself is witnessing a monumental event here and takes a step backwards in between Ashley and Kaidan.

The Asari Councillor then breaks the silence first "It is the decision of the Council that you be granted all the powers and privileges of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel."

"Spectres are not trained, but chosen. Individuals forged in the fire of service and battle; those whose actions elevate them above the rank and file." adds the Salarian Councillor.

The Asari Councillor continues "Spectre are an ideal, a symbol. The embodiment of courage, determination and self-reliance. They are the right hand of the Council, instruments of our will."

Then it is the Turian Councillors turn to speak "Spectres bare a great burden. They are protectors of galactic peace, both our first and last line of defence. The safety of the galaxy is theirs to uphold."

"You are the first human Spectre, Commander." The Asari Councillor declares "This is a great accomplishment for you and humanity on a whole."

Shepard is still angry that the Council had dismissed the threat of the Reapers and Abraxas, but making him a Spectre will allow him to go after Saren and co, but also find the proof they need so that the Council will see that the threat is real. He bows his head to the 3 Councillors "I'm honored, Councillors."

"We're going to send you into the Traverse to apprehend Saren." declares the Salarian Concillor, "He is now a fugitive so you have clearance to use any means necessary to bring him to justice or eliminate him."

"All relevant files regarding Saren will be forwarded to Ambassador Udina." adds the Turian Councillor.

"This meeting of the Council is adjourned." concludes the Asari Councillor. The 3 Council members then proceed to leave their terminals.

Anderson is the first to congratulate Shepard by shaking his hand "Congratulations, Commander."

"Thank you, Captain." he replies.

"We've got a lot of work to do, Shepard. You're going to need a full crew, a ship and supplies." declares Udina, getting straight to business "You'll also get access to special equipment down next to the C-sec academy at Spectre requisitions. Anderson, come with me. I'll need your help to set all this up. In the meantime, Shepard, maybe you could have a word with your subordinates about speaking out of line." he says in regards to Campbell speaking up during the hearing.

Anderson then leaves with Udina leading the way. He nods to each team member as he goes.

"What a dickhead!" says Campbell, thinking out loud.

"I second that." scoffs Kaidan whilst giving Campbell a pat on the shoulder.

Ashley just shakes her head "Typical. Not even a 'thank you' from the Ambassador. Did I mention I hate politicians."

Shepard shrugs "Well we haven't done anything until we find Saren and Maverick."

Campbell walks up to Shepard and pats him on the shoulder "Check you out, Shepard. First human Spectre. If you wasn't already a famous war hero, you're now gonna be famous for this too. You do realise that you're going to be getting laid an awful lot more now don't you?" he grins.

Ashley rolls her eyes at Campbell's remark "Men!"

While Kaidan laughs at Campbell's comment, he simply just shakes Shepard's hand "Congrats, Commander."

"C'mon. We should head back to the Normandy." Shepard announces "If I'm going to be given my own ship, we might find that some of us will be with me and some might remain on the Normandy."

"Well at least we'll have 2 ships after Saren and co now instead of just one." says Ashley. Even though she hopes that she will remain on the Normandy as she had made a few friends in the brief time she's been onboard.

Shepard leads the way off of the platform towards the elevators when he hears his name being called out to the right of him. The man is dressed in full Alliance officer attire and from the stripes on his shoulders he is also a Rear Admiral. Shepard asks the ground team to wait a few minutes to see what the Admiral wants to talk to him about.

"So, you guys ready to find Saren? It's looking like we're gonna be leaving the Citadel today I'd say." Campbell asks Ashley and Kaidan.

"You can bet your ass I'm ready." Ashley says enthusiastically "I am seriously looking forward to some payback after the attack on Eden Prime."

"And now that Shepard is a Spectre, we can literally go anywhere and do anything. Its definitely going to make our jobs a lot easier. I just hope that the Council has a lead on where to start, the galaxy is a hell of a big place." adds Kaidan.

"What about you Campbell? I guess this is a little more personal for you in regards to Maverick being your brother and all." asks Ashley without thinking. She instantly hopes that see hasn't touched a sore subject.

"Well I'm looking forward to stopping Abraxas once and for all that's for sure. And if my theory is right then by stopping Saren bringing the Reapers back, then Abraxas won't be able to become corporeal in our plane of existence, but he'll still have a connection to our plane though...My brother. I guess I have mixed feelings really about that. Part of me wants to try everything to make him snap out of whatever hold Abraxas has on him and that there is still hope. But the other part of me is saying that he is too far gone and that there is nothing that my brother once was still remaining in Maverick with the horrific things he's done. Which means that the only way to stop him is to..." Campbell looks down not finishing his sentence.

Ashley instantly chastises herself for bringing up the subject of Campbell's brother after seeing that he has trouble with the thought that he may have to kill him. She decides to have a private talk with him later to apologise.

Moments later All 3 marines are interrupted as Shepard returns "That was Admiral Kahoku. One of his recon teams went missing out in the Traverse and now he's been told the area is restricted so he can't go and investigate himself. He asked me to check it out during our mission now that my Spectre status allows me to travel freely without clearance and I agreed."

Campbell disagrees with Shepards decision "With all due respect, Commander. Don't you think we should be concentrating on the task at hand. Surely the severity of our mission is our top priority and helping the Admir..."

Shepard cuts him off "I've already agreed to help the Admiral out, Campbell. I know how important our mission is, believe me, but I will not turn my back on my fellow Alliance soldiers if I have the opportunity to help, regardless of what current mission may be. Do you have a problem with that, Corporal?"

Campbell takes a deep breath "No, Commander."

Shepard gives a small nod "Good. Now lets move out. I'm going to need to speak to the non-Alliance crew members and inform them that they may be transferring to another ship as well as pick up some dextro-protein based food supplies for our turian and quarian guests."

Shepard turns and proceeds to head for the elevator and the others follow suit.

**Location**** : Citadel C-sec Academy Atrium**

The team arrive and are just walking by C-sec Academy heading towards the elevator leading to docking bay. As they make their way through the crowd, a woman can be heard shouting with a hovering camera at her side "Commander! Commander Shepard!" she quickly walks over and gets in the way of the marines path.

Shepard jaw clenches knowing where this is heading "Can I help you, Miss?" he says politely.

"Hello, Commander. My name is Khalisah Al-Jilani, Westerlund News. Would you answer a few questions for our viewers?" asks the reporter.

"I'm sorry Miss Al-Jilani, but we're kind of busy right now." says Kaidan, sensing that Shepard doesn't want be hassled by the press.

"Its okay, Lieutenant. I don't mind answering a few questions for the lady." decides Shepard at the surprise of his team. "As long as Miss Al-Jilani here understands that I may not be able to answer all questions she asks due to information being classified."

Miss Al-Jilani smiles at Shepard's cooperativeness "Thank you, Commander. I'm sure our viewers will also understand." she responds as the light from the camera flicks on and focuses on Shepard.

"Humans have been trying to get the respect of the galactic community for 26 years. With that in mind, what are your feelings on being the first human Spectre?" the reporter asks wit her first question.

Shepard stands tall with his hands behind his back "To be asked is an honor. To myself and humanity as a whole." repeating more or less what the Asari had said earlier.

"Some have said that your appointment is the Citadel throwing humans a bone. Have you encountered any situations where the Citadel has asked you to place its needs before the needs of Earth?" she asks with her second question.

Shepard instantly can tell that this may have been a mistake and thinks of the best response "The Council is concerned with the needs of the whole galactic community. We're all part of that community now. Are needs are on their agenda, but we're one of many."

"You really do believe that, don't you?" she responds with a rhetorical question. "Rumour has it that you will be given command of an advanced human warship for your missions? Do you have anything to say about that?"

Shepard instantly feels a little under pressure from the reporter. She seemed to know way more than she should. "Currently I'm serving on the SSV Normandy. It was co-developed by human and turian engineers. Its design incorporates many innovations, all of which are classified I'm afraid."

"So the turians have knowledge of the Normandy that is being kept secret from the Alliance public?" she asks again rhetorically "Lets say hypothetically that you're given the Normandy to Command. Do you think it would be appropriate to hand earths most advanced warship over to the Citadel?"

Shepard now begins to regret trusting this reporter. She clearly is trying to make him look foolish on camera, but he still keeps his cool. He isn't stupid enough to let her coax him into saying something that could damage him or the Alliance military in the eyes of the press "If that is the case then it wouldn't be handed over to anyone. I would be in command and the last time I checked, I'm human. The same goes for my crew."

"Human yes, but you do work for the Citadel now, Commander. What last question if you don't mind, Commander. Rumours have also circulated that you're tracking a rogue Spectre named Saren, and that he is also working with a human named Maverick. Do you have any comment on that?"

Shepard is really taken aback by the last question, as are the rest of his team. He didn't know where she was getting her information from, but he had his suspicions that it was someone who wanted to see humanity fail in the eyes of the galactic community. He decides to end this interview with a short answer "I'm afraid I can't comment on what my current assignment may or may not be."

"Don't worry, we'll find out. The eyes of humanity are on you, Commander, don't let us down."

Campbell all of a sudden steps into view of the camera, next to Shepard."I would like to add a few things before you finish, Miss Al-Jilani, if that's alright with the Commander here?" he asks looking to Shepard.

Shepard wonders what Campbell is doing. He's not familiar with the press of this time, but gives him the benefit of the doubt "Go ahead, Corporal."

Miss Al-Jilani turn her attention to Campbell now "Please feel free to address our viewers Corporal..."

Campbell takes a stance similar to Shepard with his hands behind his back "Campbell, ma'am. Corporal Campbell. First off I just wanted to just add that it is an honor to have Commander Shepard as my commanding officer and have him selected as the first human Spectre. He is not only the perfect choice for the position but you can rest assured that he has not just humanity's best interests at heart, but the galactic community's as a whole. That being said, you yourself mentioned that there is a rogue Spectre on the run, Miss Al-Jilani. One who is being assisted by a human named Maverick. If any members of the public are to come across these dangerous individuals then they are not to approach them under any circumstances. They are to report it immediately to their nearest official."

"So you admit that your mission is to track these individuals?" she asks.

Campbell just shrugs "I never said anything of the sort, ma'am. I was just doing my duty as a member of the Alliance to inform the viewers of the dangers these 2 individuals pose to the public is all. I have nothing more to say, thank you."

"But Corporal. You sai..."

Shepard cuts off the reporter "I believe this interview is finished, Miss Al-jilani." he says in a tone that she didn't want to argue with.

Miss Al-Jilani gives in and the camera switches off "Very well, Commander. You'll be seeing me again. You can count on it." She then walks away with her Camera in tow behind her.

"What a bitch!" Ashley declares her opinion "I think I hate reporters as much as I do politicians. You handled her questions well, Commander."

"Thank you, Chief. I've had practice on dealing with the press in the past. It also looks like I'm not the only one who has either." says Shepard, referring to Campbell.

Campbell just shrugs "It seems that no matter what year it is, the press with never change. She clearly seemed to be trying to discredit you, Shepard. All I wanted to do is make sure the public knew of the dangers Saren and my brother pose. I'm not sure how Saren operates, but I know for a fact that my brother wont hesitate to kill anyone just for the thrill of it. They needed to be warned"

"Fair enough, Campbell. Though I don't think I'll be doing any more interviews for a while." admits Shepard.

"Where do you think she got her information from, Commander?" asks Kaidan "The hearing only finished what, 2 hours ago."

"I don't know, LT. But if I had to guess I'd say that she has someone who works within the Citadel Tower or high up within C-sec feeding her the information. I'll make sure to mention it to Captain Anderson when we see him."

The team get into the elevator and head up to the bay where the Normandy is docked. As they arrive at their floor the exit to find Captain Anderson and Ambassador Udina standing outside the entrance to the airlock for the Normandy. Shepard wonders what the surprise is that they're going to hit him with now is going to be.

"Good to see that you're finally here, Shepard." Udina says in an annoying and arrogant tone "I've got big news for you. Captain Anderson is stepping down as commanding officer of the Normandy. The ship is yours now."

All 4 marines look at Anderson confused wondering what the reason were for this decision. They all respected Anderson and none of them was expecting something like this. Shepard more so than the others. Shepard looked at Anderson as a kind of father figure and not just his commanding officer. He had been there a lot for him since Elysium and throughout his career .

Anderson gives them all a nod of reassurance "She's quick and quiet and you already know all of the crew. A perfect ship for the first human Spectre. Treat her well, Commander."

"I'll take good care of her, Sir." replies Shepard.

"I know you will, Commander."

Sensing that Anderson isn't going to explain his reasons for this decision, Shepard decides to improvise "On one condition though, Captain. I want the truth. Why are you really stepping down, Sir?"

Anderson takes a deep breath. He knew Shepard wouldn't let this go without some sort of explanation. Part of him felt touched that Shepard wouldn't let this go so easily. "You needed your own ship. A Spectre doesn't answer to anyone but the Council. And it's time for me to step down."

Shepard knows that isn't the whole truth and presses further "That's bullshit, Captain. You and I both know you could command the Normandy for at least another 30 years. Come clean with me. You owe me that much."

Anderson takes another deep breath, but this time in defeat knowing that he has to fess up with the truth "I was in your shoes twenty years ago, Shepard. They were considering me for the Spectres."

Campbell, Kaidan and Ashley all look to each other remembering what that cretin Harkin had said back in Chora's Den a day ago.

"Why didn't you mention this before, Captain?" asks Shepard.

"What was I supposed to say?" he snaps back with a hint of both anger and shame "That I could've been a Spectre but I blew it?...I failed, Commander. It's not something I'm proud of, believe me. Ask me later and I'll tell you the whole story." he says referring to Udina, clearly not wanting to discuss it in front of him. "For now, all you need to know is that I went on a mission with Saren, and he made sure the council rejected me. I had my chance and it came and went. Now you have the chance to make up for my mistakes."

"I promise I wont let you down, Sir." declares Shepard, standing up tall with his hands behind his back.

"Now back to business. As far as we know Saren's gone and so is his entourage. There's no point in just going out and trying to find them blind. We do however know what they're after. The Conduit. Saren has got his geth scouring the Traverse looking for clues."

"We have reports of geth in the Feros system shortly before our colony there dropped out of contact. And there have been sightings around Noveria." Udina adds.

"Find out what Saren and Maverick was after on Feros and Noveria." Anderson continues "Maybe you can figure where the Conduit is before they do."

"The Reapers and Abraxas are the real threat though." points out Shepard.

Udina crosses his arms and shakes his head slightly "I'm with the Council on this one, Shepard. I'm not sure they even exist." he says dismissively.

Campbell shakes his head. He's not surprised that he's sided with the Council, but a part of him still hoped he might of believed them to a degree. Especially after hearing the quarians evidence. 'Does the Council honestly think that their best agent would just turn his back on the Council, round up a geth army and just go on a killing spree around the galaxy for the sake of it? Of course he had a good reason! Fucking morons!' he thinks to himself. He's just about to speak up when Ashley quickly notices and stops him, giving him a meaningful glare. Campbell backs down but he's starting to get pissed off with biting his tongue around people like Udina and the Council.

Anderson believes that they do exist though, but he wants to remain kind of neutral in front of Udina "But if they do exist, then the Conduit in the key to bringing them back. Stop Saren and Maverick from getting the Conduit and we stop the Reapers from returning thus stopping Abraxas too hopefully."

"We'll stop him. That you can count on." says Shepard with conviction.

"We have one more lead." says Udina "Matriarch Benezia, the female voice on that recording? She has a daughter, a scientist who specialises in the Protheans. We don't know if she's involved but it might be a good idea to try and find her. See what she knows. Her name is Liara, Dr Liara T'soni. We have reports that she was exploring an archeological dig on one of the uncharted worlds in the Artemis Tau Cluster."

"I think we'll find Dr T'Soni first off. Hhe may have valuable information in regards to where her mother and Saren are. Then head for Feros. There still may be colonists who have survived." decides Shepard.

"That's up to you, Commander. You're a Spectre now. You don't answer to us no more." reminds Anderson.

"But your actions still reflect on humanity as a whole." adds Udina sternly "You make a mess and I get stuck cleaning it up."

"I'll try not to make anything any harder on you, Ambassador." he lied. Shepard couldn't give a shit what trouble Udina had to deal with. As does the rest of the team standing there.

"Glad to hear it, Commander. Remember...You were a human way before you was a Spectre. Right then, I have a meeting to get to." announces Udina "Captain Anderson will answer any more questions you might still have. Good day." Udina then walks past the marines into the elevator going back down into the Citadel.

The rest of the team move in slightly closer into a circle with Anderson. All knowing that they can speak more freely without Udina there. Shepard speaks up first "How are you really holding up, Captain?"

Anderson sighs "Honestly? This isn't how I pictured my career coming to an end. Pushing papers just really isn't my thing."

"You belong on the Normandy, Sir." Ashley remarks.

"The Chief is right, Captain." adds Kaidan.

Campbell finally feels that he can vent his thoughts. "Captain, if that pretentious prick is forcing you to stand down, then I'm afraid I'm going to have to kill him." he only half jokes.

Anderson actually laughs a little at Campbell's remark "Thank you for the gesture, Campbell. All of you. But no one has forced me to do anything. Shepard is the one who can lead you all to stopping Saren and your brother Maverick. I believe in Shepard. If that means that I have to step aside. Then so be it."

"What happened with you and Saren twenty years ago, Sir?" asks Shepard.

Anderson seems to go off into deep thought remembering his past "Ambassador Goyle was our representative here on the Citadel at the time and Like Udina, she wanted to get a human into the Spectres. She chose me. The Council sent Saren to keep an eye on me and evaluate my performance. Just like how they sent Nihlus to keep tabs on you."

"How come you weren't honest with us, Sir? We wouldn't have judged you." says Shepard reassuringly.

"I know, but it's just something I'm not proud of." Anderson admits "I had the chance to become the first human Spectre and I failed. Saren made sure of that."

"I'm listening." responds Shepard, hinting for Anderson to explain the whole story. The rest of the team are just as eager to hear it too.

"We had intel on a rogue scientist being funded by batarian interests." Anderson continued "He was trying to set up a facility to develop illegal AI technology out in the Verge. Alliance intel had done all the work, but the Council wanted a Spectre involved. We compromised; I was assigned to help Saren in his investigation. We tracked to a refining facility on Camala. He was hidden away somewhere inside, protected by an army of batarian mercenaries. The plan was simple; sneak into the plant, capture the scientist, sneak back out. Quick, quiet, and a minimum of bloodshed."

"I take it things didn't go as planned." asks Shepard.

"Saren and I split up to cover more ground. Then, about half way through the mission, there was a massive explosion in the refinery core. Officially, it was ruled an accident. But I think Saren detonated it on purpose to draw off the enemy guards."

"There must've been heavy casualties." asks Campbell this time.

"The explosion tore the refinery to shreds and the whole place was on fire. Black chemical clouds poured out into the atmosphere. Nobody inside survived. There was a camp for the workers and their families nearby. Between the fires and the toxic fumes, the final death count was over five hundred. Mostly civilians. Saren didn't care though. The target was eliminated and the mission was completed. I ended up taking the blame which ended all talk of me becoming a Spectre." Anderson looked down. He was still feeling angry about what transpired that day.

Ashley was still confused about something though "If Saren caused the explosion, how did he pin it on you, Captain?"

"Saren accused me of blowing his cover in his report." explained Anderson "He said it was my fault that the guards were ready for us. He claimed that's why it turned into a massacre. Saren's report was al the proof the Council needed to kill my chances of becoming a Spectre."

"You shouldn't blame yourself, Sir." says Kaidan, sensing Anderson's lingering anger.

"I don't, Lieutenant. I blame Saren. I think he wanted things to go bad. He was looking for an excuse to blow that refinery. Maybe he just likes the violence. Maybe he was just trying to make me look bad to keep me out of the Spectres. If so, he pulled it off."

"Why did you let him get away with it?" ask Shepard.

"Who do you think the Council was going to listen to, Shepard? Me? Or their best agent? I had a bad feeling about him right from the start. I should've been more careful. Maybe I could've stopped things before they got out of hand."

"There's no point in still beating yourself up about it now, Captain. But you can feel rest assured that Saren is going down. It's just a mater of time." declares Shepard.

"You're right, Commander. It's no good living in the past." admits Anderson.

It made Shepard want to kill Saren even more after hearing what he had done to Captain Anderson. The turian should never have been made a Spectre in the first place. "Before we leave, is there any extra intel you can give us on our colony on Feros?" he asks.

"The entire planet used to be one giant Prothean city. Mostly ruins now, but some of the infrastructure in still intact. The Colony tried to build on what the Protheans left behind. We lost all contact with them when the geth attacked. It's where I'd head for after you've retrieved Dr T'Soni. We don't have any other colony's residing in the Artemis Tau Cluster."

"Anything on Noveria?"

"Be careful on Noveria, It's trouble. Always has been. The whole planet's a centre for corporations to conduct illegal operations. Watch your backs there, people. Spectres are about the only Citadel authority Noveria respects, but they aren't exactly popular." Anderson finishes.

"Thank you, Captain. We should get going. I promise to bring her back in one piece." Shepard jokes, referring to the Normandy. He extends his hand which Anderson shakes in return.

"Make sure you do, Son. Good luck." replies Anderson.

Shepard then takes his leave and walks towards the Normandy air lock to which both Kaidan and Ashley follow, each of them giving a salute to Anderson. Campbell stops letting them carry on ahead.

"Something on your mind, Campbell?" asks Anderson.

"I just wanted to thank you personally myself, Captain. You not only brought me onboard your ship, but you believed me when you had no reason too. I was a complete unknown and could've been a major risk to your ship and your crew. Plus with the story I had to tell, most people would have just shoved me in the airlock and spaced me, but you didn't. You're a good man, Captain Anderson, and the Normandy is at a loss without you. If there is anything at all you need from me, anything. Just give me the word and it's done." Campbell now extends his hand for a handshake of respect with Anderson, to which he returns.

"I'll be honest, Campbell, I wouldn't normally take such a risk that I did on you but for some reason I decided to follow my gut feeling, and now I'm glad that I did. You'll be an excellent member of the crew and know you'll do well by having Shepard as your commanding officer. I hope you find your brother and manage to free him of Abraxas's control. If not, I know you'll make whatever decision is necessary and I know it will be the right one. Good luck...Corporal." says Anderson with a nod and a smile.

"Thank you, Captain." he replies and heads off towards the Normandy airlock where the others are waiting for him. They all share a glance with Anderson until the door closes.

Once through onto the CIC after going though the Normandy's VI decontamination process, everything seems to be in full swing. All crew members are at their stations preparing for departure to whatever there first location is to be, whilst Navigator Pressly stands by his station to the side of the Normandy's Galaxy Map running over the last few diagnostics with various crew members. Campbell, Kaidan and Ashley head down to the cargo deck to their lockers so they can get their armor off.

Shepard just stops for a second to take in everything that is happening. He is now in command of the _SSV Normandy, _plus he is now a Spectre too and all in the space of a few hours. A rush of pressure suddenly hits him. Questions that never really occurred to him until now. What if he fails? What happens if Saren and Maverick find the Conduit before he does? Is he ready for such a responsibility like this?

"You okay there, Commander?" asks Joker from his his pilots chair snapping Shepard out of his chain of thought.

Shepard walks over to the Normandy's pilot and arguably the best pilot in the Alliance fleet. "Just taking a moment to y'know...process everything."

Joker looks up to where Shepard is now standing next to him "Yeah, I heard about what happened to Captain Anderson. The man survives a hundred battles only to be taken down by backroom politics. You need to watch your back, Commander. Things go bad on this mission, you'll find yourself next on their chopping block."

Hearing that doesn't do anything for Shepard's confidence. "Anderson should be the one in charge." he admits "It's like I'm stealing the ship from him."

"Yeah the Captain got screwed. But it's not like you could've stopped it. Nobody's blaming you. Everyone on this ship is behind you, Commander. One hundred percent." joker reassures him. "The intercom's open. If you want to say anything to the crew, now's the time."

Shepard thinks for a minute. He really should say something to the crew. They're all putting their faith in him to lead them, putting their lives in his hands and trusting him to be the man that Anderson believes he is. He leans in to address his fellow crewmen "_This is Commander Shepard. We have our orders; find Saren and Maverick before they find the Conduit. I won't lie to you, crew. This mission isn't going to be easy. For too long our species has stood apart from the others. Now it's time for us to step up and do our part for the rest of the galaxy! Time to show them what humans are made of! Our enemy knows we are coming. When we go into the Traverse, Saren's followers will be waiting for us. But we'll be ready for them too. Humanity needs to do this. Not just for our own sake, but for the sake of every other species in Citadel space. Saren and his partner Maverick must be stopped, and I promise you all...We will stop them!" _Shepard stands up feeling satisfied with what he had said.

"Well said, Commander. The Captain would be proud." compliments Joker.

Shepard gives him a nod "The Captain gave up everything so I could have this chance. We can't fail." he says not to just Joker, but also to himself.

"Yes, Sir!" replies Joker as Shepard heads down into the CIC.

Elsewhere, Campbell is just putting his armor away in his locker and after hearing Shepard's speech over the comm, he smiles as he knows that the hunt has begun. "I'm coming for you, bro." he says out loud to himself with a grin.


End file.
